Los Angeles Times: Single-Payer Debate Resurges In California Capitol, As Opposition From Health Providers Ramps Up
The political battle lines over single-payer healthcare in California are growing starker, with an alliance of doctors, dentists, nurse practitioners and other health providers ramping up their opposition to the proposal. In a letter to legislators, the coalition, unveiled Wednesday, blasted Senate Bill 562 as a proposal that “would dismantle the healthcare marketplace and destabilize California’s economy.” (Mason, 1/17)

In other news from Sacramento —

Los Angeles Times: Paint Companies Could Hand Taxpayers The Bill For Hazardous Lead Paint Cleanup Under Proposed California Ballot Measure
A proposed November statewide ballot measure could allow three of the nation’s biggest paint companies to hand California taxpayers a bill for the cost of cleaning up health hazards caused by lead paint. The measure would place a $2-billion bond on the November ballot to fund the remediation of lead paint, mold, asbestos and other environmental dangers in homes, schools and senior citizen facilities. (Dillon, 1/17)

Orange County Register: Bill Aims To Plug Holes In Addiction Treatment Industry 
Outraged by reports of “patient brokering” and neighborhood turmoil, Sen. Pat Bates introduced legislation Wednesday to start addressing dangerous and deadly practices in California’s poorly-regulated addiction treatment industry. ...SCNG’s probe found that as opioid addiction has soared, unscrupulous rehab operators have rushed in to take advantage of mandatory mental health treatment coverage required by the Affordable Care Act. (Saavedra, Sforza and Schwebke, 1/17)

In other news —

Los Angeles Times: To Reduce The Risk Of Opioid Addiction, Study Suggests Higher Doses But Fewer Refills
Health experts have an intriguing suggestion for reducing opioid overdoses and deaths — asking doctors to prescribe bigger doses of the powerful painkillers. It may sound counterintuitive, but providing more pain relief to patients right away might allow them to stop taking the pills sooner. And reducing the total amount of time that patients are on opioids could ultimately reduce the risk of addiction and abuse, new research suggests. (Kaplan, 1/17)

The San Diego Union-Tribune: Flu-Related Deaths Hit Record-High 142 As Epidemic Surges In San Diego County 
Despite welcome signs that flu activity in the community may be waning, deaths continue to mount in San Diego County, according to the latest weekly snapshot from the county health department. Public health officials announced Wednesday that there were 51 flu-related deaths last week, pushing the season total to 142. Most of those who have died during this influenza season have been age 65 or older, and 90 percent have had other illnesses that have contributed to their deaths. (Sisson, 1/17)

Santa Rosa Press Democrat: Tests Indicate Flu Season Has Peaked In Sonoma County
As much of California grapples with the worst flu season since the 2009 swine flu pandemic, local experts say their testing suggests the spread of the virus may have peaked in Sonoma County. Public health officials are still warning that the flu will continue to spread in the coming weeks. “Even if we have peaked, many, many more people will still become ill with the flu this season and should take steps to protect themselves,” said Karen Holbrook, the county’s deputy health officer. (Espinoza, 1/17)

Los Angeles Times: When It Comes To Treating Obesity, Is Fitness More Important Than Fatness?
After nearly four decades of rising body weights in the United States and across the world, medical experts are still casting about for the best way to treat obesity and the diseases that come with it. The answer may depend on which contributes more importantly to ill health: not enough fitness, or too much fatness? (Healy, 1/17)

In a separate study —

The Mercury News: Stanford: How Gaining Weight Changes Your Whole Body
A new Stanford study has found that the entire body undergoes microbial, molecular and genetic changes for the worse when people pack on the pounds. ...Even just a modest weight gain of about six pounds, researchers found, alters the body’s basic biology– potentially boosting the risk of heart disease and diabetes. (Krieger, 1/17)

The New York Times: Treatment Offers Hope For Imprisoned California Siblings
The California case in which 13 siblings were found imprisoned at home earlier this week is shocking, but not without precedent. Lurid cases have come to light over the years of children locked in closets and basements, held captive by parents who have crumbled under the weight of drugs, extreme religious conviction, personality disorders or their own abusive backgrounds. The good news, trauma experts say, is that recovery is indeed possible. Victims can reclaim their lives. (Hoffman, 1/17)

The Washington Post: 13 Siblings, Some Shackled And Malnourished, Rescued From California House
There were no toys and no bicycles on the front lawn — only weeds that sometimes reached six feet tall. Neighbors rarely saw the 13 siblings who lived inside the home in a quiet neighborhood in Southern California, because they never went outside to play. Instead, authorities said, they were held captive in a dirty and foul-smelling house, some shackled to the furniture with chains and padlocks. (Schmidt and Bever, 1/16)

San Francisco Chronicle: Mathilde Krim, Mobilizing Force In AIDS Crusade, Dies At 91
Mathilde Krim, who crusaded against the scourge of AIDS with appeals to conscience that raised funds and international awareness of a disease that has killed more than 39 million people worldwide, died Monday at her home in Kings Point, N.Y. She was 91. (McFadden, 1/17)

Los Angeles Times: Mathilde Krim, Who Galvanized Worldwide Support In The Fight Against AIDS, Dies At 91
Both fascinated and horrified by the mysterious virus that was taking a heavy a toll on gay communities across America, Krim sought to both understand the disease and raise funds for better and quicker research. She quickly saw what a lonely fight it would be. When Krim tried to rally scientists, corporate donors and government officials, most turned away. Time and again people told her the disease was striking “those who deserved it.” “In those early days, they were literally dying in the streets,” Krim said. “[Gay men who had AIDS] lost their jobs, their apartments — their families turned away from them. It turned my stomach. It really impacted me, and I decided this was something not to be tolerated.” (Marble, 1/17)

The Wall Street Journal: Republicans Bet Health-Care Funds Shuffle Will Help Get Spending Bill Passed
Republicans are hoping to land support for a short-term spending bill by agreeing to delay some Affordable Care Act taxes and renewing funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program, a gamble that shows the continuing resonance of health-care issues in the national debate. House GOP leaders, seeking to soften Democratic opposition to the spending bill, have included six years of renewed funding for CHIP, which Democrats urgently want. At the same time, they have inserted a repeal of ACA taxes on medical devices, generous employer plans, and health insurance, likely to appeal to conservatives. (Armour, 1/17)

The Hill: Trump Tweets CHIP Should Not Be In Short-Term Funding Bill
President Trump on Thursday appeared to break with GOP congressional leaders on the morning of a key vote in the House, saying he did not want children's health insurance funded in the short-term funding bill now being considered. "CHIP should be part of a long term solution, not a 30 Day, or short term, extension!" Trump tweeted, referring to the Children's Health Insurance Program. (Sullivan, 1/18)

Politico: Republicans Lack Votes To Prevent A Shutdown
House Republicans are short of the votes they need to avoid a government shutdown, but Speaker Paul Ryan and GOP leaders remain confident they will pass a stopgap funding measure when it comes to the floor on Thursday. President Donald Trump is personally leaning on GOP lawmakers to fall into line, especially hard-line conservatives who are opposed to virtually anything Ryan and his leadership team propose. (Bresnahan, Ferris and Caygle, 1/17)

The Hill: Senate Dems Push For Health Center Funding In Spending Bill
Senate Democrats are pushing for additional health-care measures like funding for community health centers to be included in a short-term funding bill this week ahead of a impending government shutdown. Sen. Ron Wyden (Ore.), the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, said at a press conference with Democratic leaders on Wednesday that he wanted the community health center funding added, as well as an extension of programs for home visits from nurses and for rural healthcare. (Sullivan, 1/17)

The Hill: Lawmakers Weigh Measure To Fight High Drug Prices 
Lawmakers are considering adding a measure aimed at fighting high drug prices to an upcoming spending deal, in what would be a rare defeat for the powerful pharmaceutical industry. The measure, known as the Creating and Restoring Equal Access to Equivalent Samples Act, is intended to prevent branded drug companies from using tactics to delay competition from cheaper generic drugs. It is co-sponsored by a set of unusual bedfellows in both parties. (Sullivan, 1/17)

The Hill: Opponents Urge Congress To Suspend ObamaCare Tax This Year 
Opponents of a tax on health insurance are urging lawmakers to suspend the ObamaCare tax starting this year after House Republican leadership unveiled a stopgap spending measure that included a one-year delay only for 2019. GOP leaders unveiled the measure late Tuesday as part of their plan to avoid a government shutdown. It included a six-year reauthorization of the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) as well as a two-year delay of a tax on high-cost insurance plans knows as the Cadillac tax and a medical device tax in an effort to get their members on board with another short-term spending bill. (Roubein, 1/17)

The Hill: Kimmel Spars With Ryan Staffer Over CHIP
Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel sparred with a spokesman for Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) on Wednesday over legislation to fund a children's health program. Doug Andres, the press secretary for Ryan, included Kimmel on his retweet of a health-care reporter who said it would be "interesting" to see how many Democrats will vote against a short-term spending bill that could include a six-year extension for the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), a longtime Democratic objective. (Delk, 1/17)

The New York Times: Fed Up With Drug Companies, Hospitals Decide To Start Their Own
For years, hospital executives have expressed frustration when essential drugs like heart medicines have become scarce, or when prices have skyrocketed because investors manipulated the market. Now, some of the country’s largest hospital systems are taking an aggressive step to combat the problem: They plan to go into the drug business themselves, in a move that appears to be the first on this scale. “This is a shot across the bow of the bad guys,” said Dr. Marc Harrison, the chief executive of Intermountain Healthcare, the nonprofit Salt Lake City hospital group that is spearheading the effort. (Abelson and Thomas, 1/18)

In other national health care news —

The Associated Press: Senate Panel Advances Trump Health Secretary Pick
A Senate committee has signed off on President Donald Trump's pick for health secretary, clearing the way for final confirmation of Alex Azar. The Finance Committee voted 15-12 on Wednesday to send Azar's nomination to the full Senate. Although the panel's vote was largely along party lines, Azar's confirmation hearings weren't nearly as contentious as the deliberations over his predecessor, Tom Price. (1/17)

The New York Times: Trump’s Physical Revealed Serious Heart Concerns, Outside Experts Say
Cardiologists not associated with the White House said Wednesday that President Trump’s physical exam revealed serious heart concerns, including very high levels of so-called bad cholesterol, which raises the risk that Mr. Trump could have a heart attack while in office. Dr. Ronny L. Jackson, a rear admiral and the White House physician, said Tuesday in his report on the president’s medical condition that Mr. Trump was in “excellent” cardiac health despite having an LDL cholesterol level of 143, well above the desired level of 100 or less. (Shear and Kolata, 1/17)

The Washington Post: Trump To Address Friday's March For Life Antiabortion Rally Via Satellite
A year ago, throngs of abortion opponents gathered in Washington for the March for Life on the Mall and to celebrate the promises of a newly sworn-in President Trump — wins they’d been seeking for decades: Defunding Planned Parenthood, permanently banning federal money for abortion, and overturning Roe v. Wade, something he said would happen “automatically” if he got to pick judges he wanted. On Friday, Trump will address the march from the White House Rose Garden via satellite, according to organizers. But as marchers return for the major annual antiabortion gathering, almost none of the core vows the president made have been fulfilled and there’s no clear sign they’ll be attained soon. (Boorstein and Zauzmer, 1/17)

The Wall Street Journal: With Workplace Suicides Rising, Companies Plan For The Unthinkable
As suicide rates have climbed in recent years, so have instances of employees ending their lives at the workplace. It happened at a Bank of America Corp. call center in New Mexico in November, at a Ford Motor Co. plant outside Detroit in October, and at Apple Inc.’s Cupertino, Calif., headquarters in April 2016. Nationwide, the numbers are small but striking. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, suicides at workplaces totaled 291 in 2016, the most recent year of data and the highest number since the government began tallying such events 25 years ago. (Feintzeig, 1/17)