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December 2025
Volume 12 | Issue No. 102
In the heart of Kansas City's Historic
Northeast neighborhood, a beacon of
hope is rising for families struggling to
find pediatric care. Samuel U. Rodgers
Health Center's new 30,000-square-foot
pediatric wing represents more than just
an expansion of medical facilities — it's a
bold reimagining of what comprehensive
pediatric care can mean for hardworking
communities that realize historical
disinvestment, in a state where 97% of
counties are designated as infant and
toddler child care deserts, according to
a 2025 report from Missouri Champion of
Children and Child Care Aware of Missouri.
"If you're poor, it's not so fun. If you're
unhealthy, it's not so fun. But if you're
both, it's really, really, really not fun," Bob
Theis, chief executive officer of Samuel
U. Rodgers Health Center, says, echoing
the philosophy of the center's founder,
Dr. Samuel U. Rodgers. This stark reality
drives the urgency behind the pediatric
wing project, which promises to transform
health care accessibility for Kansas City's
most vulnerable young residents.
The statistics paint a sobering picture. In
2023, Missouri Medicaid assigned 8,800
children to Sam Rodgers, but only 3,100
were actively receiving care. That left
5,700 children — nearly two-thirds of
those assigned — without a dedicated
primary care provider. These children,
Theis explains, often end up in emergency
rooms and urgent care centers for
basic medical needs, missing out on the
preventive care that could keep them
healthy and thriving.
"There's a quote often attributed to
Frederick Douglass — it's easier to build
strong children than to repair broken
men," Theis reflects. "What we're trying to
do is build strong kids, strong families."
Integrated Care for an Underserved
Community
The area surrounding Sam Rodgers'
main campus at 825 Euclid Avenue sits
squarely in what federal health officials
designate a medically underserved area.
Despite being located just 10 miles from
Arrowhead Stadium, about a mile from
the planned new Royals stadium, and a
half-mile from the new soccer stadium,
the neighborhood faces critical shortages
in primary care providers. "We're in the
middle of it all," Theis said. "But you can be
in the middle of it all and still have needs,
especially for people who live on the
edges in our community."
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