Los Angeles Times: Demonstrators Protest Rep. Rohrabacher’s Support Of American Health Care Act
About 30 demonstrators, some holding signs that read “Putin’s favorite congressman,” “Dump Dana 2018” and “Just say no to Trumpcare,” gathered outside Rep. Dana Rohrabacher’s office in downtown Huntington Beach on Tuesday afternoon to protest the Republican congressman’s support for President Trump’s policies. The gathering was organized by Indivisible OC 48, a left-leaning group of constituents in Rohrabacher’s 48th Congressional District who have planned protests outside his office at 101 Main St. since Trump’s inauguration. They started at the office and marched down the street to the pier. (Fry, 5/9)

Los Angeles Times: After Healthcare Vote, California Rep. Jeff Denham Hears From Angry Constituents: 'You Voted Against Me' 
Rep. Jeff Denham (R-Turlock), who voted for the Republican healthcare bill that passed the House last week, flew home this week to face his constituents, meeting with a small crowd Tuesday morning in his Central Valley district... Denham had previously said that he would vote against the bill, but ended up voting for it, along with the rest of California's House Republicans. (Westfall, 5/9)

The Mercury News: Congressman Jeff Denham Faces Angry Crowd After Obamacare Repeal Vote 
When Congressman Jeff Denham walked into a teen center in this small Central Valley city on Tuesday morning — trailed by several dozen yelling, heckling protesters — he no doubt felt that his 2018 race had just begun.And he was probably right. The four-term congressman, back home in his district for a May recess, was here for a typically tranquil constituent meet-and-greet over coffee. Instead, he faced a crowd of locals furious with his vote for the American Health Care Act, the bill to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, commonly known as “Obamacare.” (Seipel, 5/9)

The San Diego Union-Tribune: Several Hundred Protest Issa's Health Care Vote 
Several hundred people — some carrying canes and crutches — gathered outside Rep. Darrell Issa’s Vista office on Tuesday to blast the Republican lawmaker for voting in favor of a House bill to repeal Obamacare and replace it with a plan that could mean sweeping changes in health coverage for millions of Americans. “This turnout shows that people are enraged,” said Vista resident Marcheita Stringfellow, one of an estimated 800 people gathered outside Issa’s office. Many of the protesters shared fears that repealing the Affordable Care Act will strip them of coverage. (Figueroa, 5/9)

McClatchy: People Die Without Health Care; Rep. Raúl Labrador Was Wrong 
Rep. Raúl Labrador, R-Idaho, found himself in a pickle (and in a cameo in a Jimmy Kimmel monologue) when he suggested they don’t. He later elaborated that he was making the point that no one would “die in the streets” under the Republican health care plan, because hospitals are required by law to treat any patient in need of emergency care. But health care advocates say his explanation falls short of reality, pointing to a host of studies that show access to health care does prevent premature death, in the case of Americans with conditions such as cancer, diabetes, coronary heart disease, respiratory failure and asthma. (Clark, 5/9)

Los Angeles Times: Sen. Kamala Harris On Idaho Congressman's Healthcare Claim: 'What The ... Is That?'
California Sen. Kamala Harris had some heated words this week for an Idaho congressman's assertion at a town hall that “nobody dies because they don’t have access to healthcare." "Like this guy, this congressman, you might as well say, ‘People don't starve because they don't have food.' What the ... is that? What are you saying? How can you say that?" Harris said during an interview with Pod Save America, a podcast run by former Obama administration staffers. It was recorded live in front of an audience of more than 2,000 people in San Francisco, according to her staff. (Wire, 5/9)

In other news —

The Washington Post Fact Checker: Kamala D. Harris’s Claim That 129 Million People With Preexisting Conditions ‘Could Be Denied Coverage’
As part of a tweet storm condemning the House Republican bill to overhaul the Affordable Care Act, Sen. Kamala D. Harris (D-Calif.) used a talking point that a number of Democrats have used when attacking the changes that proposed legislation would make concerning the handling of preexisting medical conditions in the individual market. We have examined those changes in depth in a report and exposed the false talking point that rape or sexual assault would be considered a preexisting condition. So how does this figure of 129 million fare? (Kessler, 5/10)

Capital Public Radio: Taxes And Warning Labels On Drinks Stall, Under Pressure From Industry 
The California restaurant and beverage industries have successfully opposed two high-profile bills in the state Legislature this month. The bills would have added warning labels to sodas and taxes to hard liquor. The hard liquor tax — $1.20/gallon — would have helped pay the cost of removing another tax, the sales tax on diapers and tampons. (Bradford, 5/9)

In other news —

Modesto Bee: Modesto Eyes Marijuana Tax For November Ballot 
Modesto has not yet decided whether to allow marijuana businesses in the city, what types, how many, and where to put them. And the city has not decided whether it will work with Stanislaus County on a uniform approach to regulating and taxing marijuana. But none of that has stopped Modesto from moving forward with putting its own marijuana tax on the November ballot. (Valine, 5/9)

KPBS: San Diego Study Finds EpiPens Are Still Potent Long After Their Expiration Date 
San Diego researchers have found that EpiPens can still work long after their official expiration date. The auto-injectors can be lifesaving in cases of severe allergic reaction. But their price has more than quadrupled over the last 10 years. They now cost hundreds of dollars each, and need to be replaced about once a year. (Wagner, 5/9)

The Mercury News: Trump Era Offers Only Uncertainties For Santa Clara County Budget
It’s been a five-year financial boom for Santa Clara County government, which bounced back from the fiscal slash-and-burn of the Recession and is now poised to consider a $6.5 billion budget. But officials say it comes with an asterisk, and that’s tied to what they call a big question mark in Washington D.C. (Kurhi, 5/9)

In other news —

Ventura County Star: $3M In Ventura County Mental Health Cuts Proposed
Several programs aiding troubled youths and seriously mentally ill adults will be eliminated or reduced July 1 under a proposal from county officials. Ventura County Behavioral Health Director Elaine Crandall says she needs to cut $3 million because reserves are running low from a voter-approved income tax on millionaires amid new demands for funding housing, crisis care and services to foster youths. (Wilson, 5/9)

Politico: 4 Deal-Breakers That Could Blow Up A Senate Obamacare Repeal Bill
The Senate’s fresh attempt to dismantle Obamacare is already running into its first roadblock — the growing list of demands from GOP lawmakers eager to leave their own mark on the legislation. Just days into the chamber’s health care debate, centrists and self-styled mavericks are testing the party’s razor-thin margin for victory and setting the stage for a series of high-profile negotiations. Those stare downs are likely to shape big parts of the legislation, since GOP leaders can only absorb two defections if Democrats and the chamber’s two independents stand unified in opposition. (Cancryn, 5/9)

The Washington Post: Senate Republicans Face Their Own Divisions In Push For Health-Care Overhaul
Sen. Ted Cruz, a defiant loner whose feuds with Republican Party leaders have made him a conservative favorite, suddenly felt an itch to collaborate. It was late March, just after the dramatic collapse of House Republicans’ initial attempt to pass a sweeping overhaul of the nation’s health-care system. Cruz (R-Tex.) sent notice to party colleagues that he wanted to convene a working group to keep alive the GOP’s pledge to undo the law known as Obamacare. (Costa and Sullivan, 5/9)

The Associated Press: AP Explains: How Byrd Rule Shapes GOP Push On Health Care
The success of Republican efforts to repeal and replace Democrat Barack Obama's Affordable Care Act could depend on an obscure Senate rule that few people have heard of and even fewer understand. It's called the Byrd rule, named for the late West Virginia Sen. Robert Byrd and designed decades ago to preserve Senate filibuster rights. What it means for health care is that many Republican ideas may be ruled ineligible. (5/10)

Los Angeles Times: GOP Senators Can Cut Obamacare Taxes Or Preserve Coverage For Millions — But Probably Not Both
As they take up the campaign to replace the Affordable Care Act, Senate Republicans face a critical choice between cutting taxes or preserving health coverage for millions of Americans, two competing demands that may yet derail the GOP push to roll back the 2010 healthcare law. House Republicans, who passed their own Obamacare repeal measure last week, skirted the dilemma by cutting both taxes and coverage. (Levey, 5/9)

The Hill: Early Splits Appear As Senate Republicans Confront Medicaid Choice
Republican senators hailing from states that took ObamaCare's Medicaid expansion are taking different tacks on defending the program as much of their party looks to end it. Sen. Rob Portman (R-Ohio) told reporters Tuesday that he supports rolling back the Medicaid expansion by ending the extra federal money for it, as long as there is a "soft landing." But Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) told The Hill that she wants the expansion of coverage to remain, though she said it did not have to be in the same form. (Sullivan, 5/9)

The New York Times: Women Hold G.O.P. Senate Seats, But Little Influence
The Senate passed a significant milestone this year: 21 of its members are now women, the highest number in American history. But as the recent wrangling over the American health care system in Congress shows, there isn’t always power in numbers. After the House passed a health care bill that gave states the option to drop pregnancy and maternity care from required insurance coverage, Republican leaders in the Senate seemed poised to answer criticism from women. Instead they courted more, naming a 13-member, all-Republican working group on health care legislation, without a single woman on it — forcing Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the majority leader who approved the panel, on the defensive on Tuesday. (Steinhauer, 5/9)

Reuters: Senators On Defensive Over All-Male Healthcare Panel
After a meeting of the Senate healthcare group, lawmakers were bombarded with questions as to why no women were named to the 13-man panel. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell tried to explain. "The working group that counts is all 52 of us," McConnell told reporters, referring to all 52 Republican senators in the 100-member chamber. "Nobody is being excluded based upon gender ... Everybody's at the table. Everybody." Democrats pounced. Republican men are negotiating "a secret healthcare plan, which I really hope is not happening in the men's locker room," said Senator Patty Murray, a member of the Democratic leadership from Washington state. (5/9)

The New York Times: Critics At Town Halls Confront Republicans Over Health Care
United States representatives often hold town halls with constituents in their home districts during a congressional recess. But this week, with the House on a break, few of the 217 Republicans who approved legislation to repeal and replace critical parts of the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, chose to defend their votes at public meetings. Those who did were, in several cases, greeted by shouts and criticism. (Fortin and Victor, 5/9)

NPR: NPR Fact-Checks Republican Defense Of GOP Health Bill
Town hall meetings got loud for some Republican members of Congress this week, as they defended the passage of the American Health Care Act by the House of Representatives. Constituents have been asking a lot of questions, and we've been fact-checking the answers given by some leading GOP lawmakers. (Kodjak, 5/9)

The New York Times: Senate Confirms Scott Gottlieb To Head F.D.A.
The Senate voted 57 to 42 on Tuesday to confirm Dr. Scott Gottlieb as commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, where he will be responsible for regulating drug companies to which he has had close ties in recent years. Dr. Gottlieb, 44, has promised to divest himself from several health care companies and recuse himself for one year from decisions involving those businesses, but that was not enough for many Democratic senators, including Patty Murray of Washington. (Thomas, 5/9)

In other national health care news —

The Wall Street Journal: 13 And Counting: Obama Regulations Rolled Back Under Congressional Review Act
Republicans intent on rolling back Obama-era regulations have made liberal use of a once-obscure tool: the Congressional Review Act. The act has been used to undo 13 regulations since President Donald Trump took office, and another one is on the president’s desk but hasn’t been signed. Removing the regulations has affected a range of issues from the environment to the workplace to health and education. (Beilfuss, 5/9)

The Associated Press: Abortion Foes Cheer Series Of Advances, As Opponents Protest
From the U.S. Capitol and the White House to far-flung battlegrounds in Arizona, Iowa and elsewhere, it's been a dramatic fortnight in the debate over access to abortion and birth control. Foes of abortion celebrated a series of advances and claimed new momentum, as abortion rights supporters mounted protests to try to blunt it. Planned Parenthood, the anti-abortion movement's prime target, called it "the world's worst week for women's health." (Crary and Silber, 5/9)

The Washington Post: House Panel Probes Drug Distributors And DEA Amid National Opioid Crisis
A congressional committee Monday opened an investigation into the Drug Enforcement Administration’s slowdown of enforcement efforts in the face of a national opioid epidemic and demanded to know why drug distributors had shipped hundreds of millions of painkillers to communities in West Virginia. The House Energy and Commerce Committee sent letters to the DEA and the nation’s three largest drug distribution companies, giving them until June 8 to answer questions about their responsibilities to combat the rising epidemic, which has claimed nearly 180,000 lives during the past decade. (Higham and Bernstein, 5/9)