National News

2020 Philanthropist of the Year: John Sherman

Swinging for the Fences Long before he led the effort to keep the Royals an amenity to benefit all of Kansas City, John Sherman was focused on using philanthropy to help the truly disadvantaged level their own playing fields. Many… more

Ferrellgas Partners reaches bankruptcy deal with creditors

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Is KC employers’ recruiting edge—housing costs—in peril?

It’s a question worth asking for companies in recruiting mode as new figures show the Kansas City market posted the second-highest annual sales price increase in the U.S. in October. That’s according to the realty data experts at Zillow, whose… more

Sen. Hawley of Missouri reveals $1,200 stimulus check plan

Republican Sen. Josh Hawley unveiled a plan last week for another round of stimulus checks for millions of Americans. The Missouri senator modeled the new legislation after March’s CARES Act. His plan would provide $1,200 for individuals, $2,400 for couples… more

FDA to potentially authorize Pfizer vaccine today

A panel of outside experts on Thursday recommended the issue an emergency use authorization to the Covid-19 vaccine being developed by Pfizer and BioNTech. The 17-4 vote came after members of the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee discussed… more

Total weekly bankruptcy filings dip by 33.4 percent from 2019

Total Filings Total filings were down by 33.4 percent during the week ending December 6 compared to the same week in 2019. Once again, the largest decline involved chapter 13 filings, which were down by well over one-half from last… more

U.S. House passes federal funding extension

Congressional leaders moved on Wednesday to buy more time to strike an elusive deal on an economic relief measure to address the ruin wrought by the pandemic, but with time running short, it was unclear whether a compromise would pass.… more

Kansas, Missouri join Facebook antitrust lawsuit

The federal government and 46 state attorneys general are suing Facebook, accusing the social media giant of using illegal tactics to maintain its dominance. The states' lawsuit, led by New York Attorney General Letitia James, alleges that Facebook squashed potential rivals… more

Clinical Reference Laboratory expands operations out west

Confirm BioSciences out of San Diego, Calif. has been acquired by Lenexa-based Clinical Reference Laboratory (CRL). CRL is one of the largest privately held clinical testing laboratories in the U.S., and now leverages Confirm's massive customer base in Drugs of… more

Coping with COVID: Final trials show AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine safe with 70 percent efficacy

AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine was 70 percent effective at preventing infection from the virus in more than 11,000 participants in late-stage international trials, according to results published Dec. 8 in The Lancet.  The vaccine was only about 60 percent effective among people… more