September 9, 1998

Florence Fabricant reports on visit to Jalisco, Mexico, where there are fields covered with acres of steely agave plants, raw ingredient for tequila; notes that even today, world's entire supply of genuine tequila is still made from agave grown in Jalisco; map; photos (L)

Many of nation's health maintenance organizations, after aggressively recruiting elderly and disabled into their Medicare plans, are heavily retreating; United Healthcare Corp, once darling of Wall Street, recently took $900 million charge against earnings, in part to scale back its Medicare operations in 35 counties; in last year, Aetna, Pacificare Health Systems, Oxford Health Plans, Foundation Health Systems, Kaiser Permanente and Blue Cross and Blue Shield associations have canceled Medicare plans in parts of 13 states; virtually no Medicare HMO's are available in Utah or in rural Ohio; despite HMO financial problems in Medicare market, Congress is now pushing for even more people to enroll in plans; financial setbacks for some HMO's have raised serious questions as to whether they can prosper covering Medicare patients; charts; photo of Eugene and Yuriko DeLorenzo, who have had their Medicare coverage canceled (M)

Michael Jordan's Steak House, new restaurant in Grand Central Terminal has a small dining space off the main dining room where up to six diners can share a table, with walls blocking out the sights and sounds of the restaurant and surrounding terminal; small, private rooms are feature of some other restaurants, such as Picholine; photos (M)

Eric Asimov Critic's Notebook column on increasingly congested conditions in some New York City restaurants; with rents soaring and restaurants booming, restaurateurs feel justified in squeezing in an extra table or two--even if it means the difference between convivial and claustrophobic; New Yorkers, who are happy just to get table in first place, are putting up with being packed into dining rooms with almost biological efficiency; photos (M)

President Clinton's visit to a Maryland school was to be a respite from political strife. But the reception wasn't all smiles. Page A20.