Los Angeles Times: Democrats Running For California Governor Debate Over Bringing Single-Payer Healthcare To The State 
The top four Democrats running for California governor stood onstage for the first major candidate forum Sunday, splintering over single-payer healthcare but little else. The divide on healthcare mirrored the conflict within the Democratic Party both nationally and in California, with progressives — including those who backed Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders for president — aggressively pushing for universal healthcare while moderates and establishment party members want to plot a more deliberative, cautious course. (Willon, 10/22)

Sacramento Bee: Candidates For California Governor Debate Universal Health Care
The two leading Democrats for California governor on Sunday split over how to achieve universal health care, with Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom defending his support for a government-run, single-payer system and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa dismissing as “pie in the sky” plans that don’t include viable financing methods. (Cadelago, 10/22)

KQED: Democratic Candidates For Governor Split On Single-Payer Health Care
California’s four Democratic candidates for governor all promised to expand healthcare for Californians but are split over whether that approach should be a single-payer system. At a forum in Anaheim sponsored by the National Union of Healthcare Workers, Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom reiterated his support for single-payer in California, while former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa urged caution over adopting a dramatic overhaul that could cost billions of dollars. (Marzorati, 10/22)

And —

Sacramento Bee: Single-Payer Health Care Debate Returns To CA Capitol 
Perhaps no measure generated more interest at the Capitol this past legislative session than Senate Bill 562, as activists led by the California Nurses Association mounted a massive campaign in support of the proposal for a statewide, government-run health care system. ... That process begins this week with two days of hearings, 1 p.m. today and 2 p.m. tomorrow in Room 4202 of the Capitol. Announced by [Assembly Speaker Anthony] Rendon in August to determine how the Legislature can move forward on improving health care access in California, the discussions led by Assemblymen Jim Wood, D-Healdsburg, and Joaquin Arambula, D-Fresno, will focus on current gaps in coverage and universal health systems in other countries. (Koseff, 10/23)

San Diego Union-Tribune: How Did Hawaii's Hepatitis A Outbreak Compare To San Diego's? 
Known for living in a laid-back paradise, Hawaii residents showed just how quickly they can move when a hepatitis A outbreak arrived in late June of 2016. The Aloha State was able to end the viral onslaught in six months, a significantly shorter span than has already passed in San Diego and Southeast Michigan where hepatitis A has sickened more than 800 people. The island outbreak killed two people compared with 15 in Michigan and 19 in San Diego so far. (Sisson, 10/20)

In other public health news —

The Bakersfield Californian: Doctors Still Foggy On Valley Fever Symptoms
Emergency room doctors at Torrance Memorial Medical Center told [Rick Parker] that nobody in Los Angeles develops valley fever and diagnosed him with tuberculosis. Then his general practitioner said he had pneumonia, then tuberculosis again. Parker said she was about to begin treating him for lung cancer when he locked himself in her office and demanded that she test him for valley fever. ...Valley fever, or coccidioidomycosis, is caused when fungal spores common in the southwestern United States get released into the air and inhaled. Most people don't develop symptoms, but others come down with a fever, cough, extreme fatigue and a rash, among other symptoms. In rare cases, the fungal spore can spread to the bloodstream, infect other organs and cause cocci meningitis, leading to a lifetime of health issues and potentially death. (Pierce and Innes, 10/21)

Orange County Register: Are Implants For Opioid Addicts A New Hope Or A New Scam? 
If a stake could be driven through the vampire heart of the nation’s opioid epidemic, it might look something like this: Four tiny spines, each smaller than a matchstick, sunk into a drug addict’s upper arm. These implants remain beneath the skin for months, delivering a continuous dose of a drug called buprenorphine, which blunts the euphoria of an opioid high. (Sforza, 10/22)

Capital Public Radio: California Nurses Say Puerto Rico Residents Are 'Desperate' After Hurricane 
Registered nurse Cathy Kennedy says survivors of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico need one very important thing: water. Kennedy works at the Kaiser Permanente Roseville Medical Center, but she took a break this month to lead a team of 50 nurses to San Juan. (Caiola, 10/20)

Los Angeles Times: Adventist Health Glendale Volunteers Deliver Medical Aid To 2,000 In Armenia
For the third year in a row, a team of volunteer medical professionals from Adventist Health Glendale delivered care and facility improvements to the hospital’s sister medical site in Armenia, serving more than 2,000 underprivileged people during their time there. With continued logistical support from the Armenia Fund, a nonprofit humanitarian aid group, Adventist brought more than 50 volunteer missionaries to provide various medical services at Noyemberyan Hospital in Armenia for a week last month. (Landa, 10/20)

In other news —

Los Angeles Times: Roberts To Leave Top Job At Adventist Health Glendale
Kevin Roberts, president and chief executive of Adventist Health Glendale, formerly known as Glendale Adventist Medical Center, will leave his leadership role at the hospital on Nov. 3 to pursue other opportunities, according to Adventist officials. (Kellam, 10/20)

KQED: Counselors, Canines Helping Firefighters Battle Emotional Stress
Containment efforts are winding down for the wildfires that have ravaged Northern California this month, but not all the dangers have passed. A handout is circulating among firefighters that details the warning signs of extreme physical and emotional stress. (Cuevas, 10/23)

In other news from across the state —

Oakland Tribune: Help Contra Costa Crisis Center Share Holiday Spirit
For almost half a century, the Walnut Creek-based Contra Costa Crisis Center has endeavored to improve the realities of people in urgent need — with crisis hotlines, grief counseling, homeless resources, health and dental care, tax assistance. That’s just skimming the surface of the Crisis Center’s reach. It’s staggering. The nonprofit can (and does) refer clients to an array of 1,600 services.The Crisis Center fields more than 5,000 calls a month, but it is especially relevant this time of year. One example: It partners with the Bay Area News Group in the annual Share the Spirit holiday campaign to benefit needy residents in Contra Costa and Alameda counties. Last year, the program raised $180,000 that was distributed to 40 nonprofits. (Peterson, 10/22)

The New York Times: McConnell Signals Willingness To Hold Vote On Health Deal If Trump Approves
Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the majority leader, said on Sunday that he would be willing to bring a bipartisan proposal to stabilize health insurance markets up for debate if President Trump signaled his support. “If there’s a need for some kind of interim step here to stabilize the market, we need a bill the president will actually sign,” Mr. McConnell said on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “And I’m not certain yet what the president is looking for here, but I’ll be happy to bring a bill to the floor if I know President Trump would sign it.” (Fandos, 10/22)

The Hill: Schumer Calls On McConnell To Send Bipartisan Health Care Bill To Floor This Week 
Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) called on Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) Sunday to bring a bipartisan short-term ObamaCare stabilization deal to the Senate floor this week, despite uncertain support from President Trump. "This is a good compromise. It took months to work out. It has a majority. It has 60 senators supporting it, we have all 48 Democrats, 12 Republicans. I would urge Senator McConnell to put it on the floor immediately, this week," Schumer told NBC's Chuck Todd on "Meet the Press" on Sunday. (Manchester, 10/22)

The Associated Press: Top Dems Nix White House Demands To Alter Health Care Deal
Top Senate Democrats rejected White House demands Friday to add provisions weakening the Obama health care law to a bipartisan deal on steadying unsettled insurance markets. The compromise already faced an uphill path and this was the latest blow. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said the Trump administration was involved in the negotiations that produced the accord and "should support it instead of floating other ideas that would further the sabotage both parties are trying to reverse." (Fram, 10/20)

The New York Times: I.R.S. Says It Will Reject Tax Returns That Lack Health Insurance Disclosure
Despite President Trump’s pronouncements, not only is Obamacare not dead, there are signs that his administration is keeping it alive. In the latest signal that the Affordable Care Act is still law, the Internal Revenue Service said this week that it is taking steps to enforce the most controversial provision: the tax penalty people face if they refuse to obtain health insurance. (Abelson, 10/20)

Los Angeles Times: Obamacare Enrollment Starts Nov. 1. Here's What You Need To Know
Choosing the right health insurance plan can be a cumbersome process, and this year’s political back-and-forth over Obamacare has made it seem even more confusing. For months, executive orders and congressional debates have swirled around the law, officially called the Affordable Care Act. President Donald Trump has declared the law “dead” — but it’s still in effect, and open enrollment for plans on the Obamacare exchange begins Nov. 1. (Schencker, 10/20)

The Washington Post: ACA Enrollment Schedule May Lock Millions Into Unwanted Health Plans
Millions of Americans with insurance through the Affordable Care Act could find themselves locked into health plans they do not want for the coming year because of the Trump administration’s schedule for the enrollment season that starts in less than two weeks. The complication arises when people who already have health plans under the law are automatically re-enrolled in the same plan. In the past, a few million consumers each year have been auto-enrolled and then were sent government notices encouraging them to check whether they could find better or more affordable coverage. (Goldstein, 10/20)

The Associated Press: States To Ask Judge To Keep Health Subsidies Cut By Trump
An attempt by 19 states to force President Donald Trump to pay health care subsidies will go before a federal judge in San Francisco. State attorneys general, led by California Democrat Xavier Becerra, will try on Monday to convince U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria that the payments are required by law. (10/23)

The Associated Press: DC Court Blocks For Now Immigrant Teen's Access To Abortion
A Washington appeals court is blocking for now an abortion sought by a pregnant 17-year-old immigrant being held in a Texas facility, ruling Friday that the government should be given time to try to release her so she can obtain the abortion outside of its custody. (10/20)

The New York Times: Undocumented 17-Year-Old Must Delay Abortion, Court Rules
The decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit could put her health at risk, doctors say, especially now that she is about 15 weeks pregnant. “While first-trimester abortion is over 10 times safer than childbirth, the risks gradually increase in the second trimester to those of childbirth,” Dr. Nancy L. Stanwood, the chief of family planning at the Yale School of Medicine, said in an email. Forcing her to wait, she added, “harms her physical health, period.” (Caron, 10/21)