A prep course for the month-long World Cup soccer tournament, a worldwide pheno

d . `` The fact is , 150 million people have a health care plan , '' Stark said 

at a health reporters ' breakfast this week . `` The worry of health care for th

e majority of Americans is an economic worry and as the economy gets a little be

tter , they may feel a little better about their health care . '' Clinton had or

iginally planned to meet only with Democrats first with Senate Democratic leader

s and then the full House Democratic caucus . But Mitchell prevailed on the pres

ident Wednesday to add a session that included Senate Republican leaders . Asked

 whether she could support alternatives that would reform many aspects of the in

surance industry , first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton said : `` It is absolutely 

clear to me that we need to make a lot of the reforms that are being mentioned .

 But in the absence of a definite plan that will achieve universal coverage , th

ose are not enough . ''

 Want to buy a sexy car that offers loads of `` fahrvergnugen ? '' Consider a VW

 Cabrio . Want to buy one that 's more pedestrian but more likely to be there in

tact when you emerge from the mall ? Buy a sensible , practical , Chevrolet Cava

lier station wagon . Apparently , that Chevy model is about as popular among thi

eves as a cop with a flashlight . The Highway Loss Data Institute , an insurance

 industry trade group , said in its annual auto theft report that the VW convert

ible had the highest rate of theft claims , based on payments by insurance compa

nies between 1991 and 1993 for 1991 through 1993 models . The claims include tho

se for thefts of entire cars and for parts , such as radios , air bags and hood 

ornaments . In VW 's case , said Kim Hazelbaker , senior vice president of the i

nsurance group , the high claim rate is due mostly to the theft of radios , a lo

ngstanding problem in VWs that apparently , said Hazelbaker , is made worse by t

he limited security of a convertible . Hazelbaker hastened to point out that the

 report 's conclusions do not apply to the redesigned , 1995 VW Cabrio introduce

d earlier this month . VW spokesman Andy Boyd in Auburn Hills , Mich. , says nei

ther the radio nor its mounting system was changed , but that a factory anti-the

ft alarm now is standard . The Cavalier wagon had the lowest theft claim frequen

cy . Why the wagon and not the mechanically similar coupe , sedan or convertible

 models ? Probably , says Hazelbaker , because the wagon is more likely to be pu

t to bed at night in a safe suburban garage . Whatever the reason , the Cavalier

 wagon 's days are numbered . It will be discontinued at the end of the current 

model year . A redesigned Cavalier line due in the fall will not include a wagon

 . Whatever you drive , though , there was some good news from the insurance fol

ks : The frequency of claims overall for '93 models was the lowest in history ab

out one-fourth that for 1979 models in their first year , said Hazelbaker . `` C

learly , '' he said , `` anti-theft devices have had some impact and so has incr

eased public awareness of the problem , particularly because of carjackings . ''

 Unfortunately , the group said , the average claim is now four times as high as

 it was in 1979 , because cars , parts and repairs are more expensive now .

 WASHINGTON Ending months of intense debate within the administration , Presiden

t Clinton will propose making it easier for states to deny additional benefits t

o women who have children while already on welfare , senior administration offic

ials say . The decision aligns Clinton with those inside and outside the adminis

tration who argue that government must intensify its efforts to discourage out-o

f-wedlock births , which now constitute roughly 30 percent of all births in Amer

ica . `` We think it is very important to discourage additional births on welfar

e , '' said one senior official . `` We are saying that states that want to try 

this approach should be able to try it . '' But the so-called `` family cap '' p

olicy inspires even more intense opposition among liberals than the proposed two

-year time limit on welfare that is at the center of Clinton 's plan , which is 

now expected to be introduced shortly after he returns from commemorating the 50

th anniversary of D-Day in Europe next month . Given its potential to affect the

 most intimate decisions of millions of women , the family cap issue is certain 

to provoke a polarized struggle in Congress . Many moderate and conservative leg

islators see the family cap as a way to promote personal responsibility , while 

liberals largely denounce it as racist and sexist social engineering . No other 

proposal may more starkly demonstrate the difficulty of finding common ground be

tween left and right on the emotional issues swirling through welfare reform . `

` This is clearly one where there are very deep feelings on both sides of the is

sue , and apart from the families it directly affects , it has a large symbolic 

impact , '' said Mark Greenberg , an attorney with the Center for Law and Social

 Policy in Washington . In fact , although Clinton settled on the new policy at 

a Tuesday meeting , administration officials still appear divided over how close

ly to identify with the controversial idea . Some officials take pains to say th

e administration does not intend to push states to adopt family cap policies , m

erely to smooth the way for those interested in the idea . One agency official l

ukewarm to the policy insisted the decision left the administration `` neutral '

' on the question of whether more states should adopt the caps . But other senio

r officials acknowledge that by streamlining the approval process and signaling 

at least tacit federal support for the family cap , the administration plan will

 inevitably encourage more states to embrace the idea . Outside observers agree 

. ( Begin optional trim ) `` The notion of states trying different approaches an

d learning what we can from those different approaches makes enormous common sen

se and political sense , '' said Delaware Gov. Thomas R. Carper , a Democrat , w

ho presented the administration proposals to a closed session of the National Go

vernors ' Association executive board Wednesday . `` That flexibility on the par

t of the administration is likely to draw support from many of us in the NGA . '

' It is a sign of how far the welfare reform debate has shifted over the past ye

ar that the family cap that Clinton will propose while anathema to liberal advoc

acy groups occupies a middle ground among the competing efforts to discourage ou

t-of-wedlock births . As a presidential candidate , Clinton declared that he wou

ld allow states to experiment with the family cap proposal although he declined 

to sign such a law when he was governor of Arkansas . The administration plan re

flects that perspective . It would not require states to impose a family cap , b

ut it would allow them to implement such policies without federal approval , sou

rces said . Under current law , states cannot implement such policies without wa

ivers from the Health and Human Services department , a process that can take mo

nths and require extensive negotiations . Only three states have received federa

l approval for a family cap plan . The Bush administration approved a proposal f

rom New Jersey , and the Clinton administration has approved plans in Georgia an

d Arkansas . Applications are pending from California , Maryland and Wisconsin .

 ( End optional trim ) In Congress , which must approve Clinton 's proposal , a 

fierce ideological cross fire over the family cap idea has already erupted . Man

y moderate and conservative legislators are pushing for sterner measures to disc

ourage out-of-wedlock births . The principal House Republican reform bill would 

require states to deny additional benefits to women who have children while they

 are on the rolls , unless the state passes a law specifically providing such be

nefits . A group of House Democratic moderates led by Rep. Dave McCurdy , D-Okla

. , has introduced identical legislation . `` The administration proposal is sti

ll short of what I think is required , but they could have done worse , '' McCur

dy said . `` We have to , as a nation , start to remove the incentive for out-of

-wedlock , illegitimate , births . '' A competing Republican welfare reform prop

osal introduced by conservative legislators in both houses and backed by leading

 conservative activists , including Jack F. Kemp and William J. Bennett would re

quire family caps without allowing states to exempt themselves . In the name of 

further reducing illegitimate births , both Republican bills would also cut off 

all welfare payments to unmarried young mothers . On the other hand , the family

 cap is pointedly absent in liberal welfare reform plans introduced last week by

 Rep. Robert T. Matsui , D-Calif. , and Wednesday , with 42 co-sponsors , by Rep

. Patsy T . Mink ( D-Hawaii ) . Internal administration opponents of the plan st

ill hold out the hope that Clinton will trade away the family cap as a means of 

broadening liberal support for the overall initiative . Liberal legislators and 

welfare advocacy groups regard the family cap as a mean-spirited effort that pun

ishes the children of recipients in an effort to change their parents ' behavior

 . Advocates also contend that family caps pander to the stereotype that welfare

 recipients bear more children to sweeten their welfare checks . In fact , they 

say , welfare mothers typically receive only $ 57 more a month for a new child ,

 while 72 percent of welfare families have two children or less , according to f

ederal statistics . ( Optional add end ) Early results in New Jersey , the only 

state that has actually implemented a family cap , show that births have decline

d among welfare mothers since the policy went into place . But it remains uncert

ain whether those numbers reflect the cap 's impact , a general decline in child

-bearing in the state , or a decreased willingness among welfare recipients to r

eport new births . The American Civil Liberties Union and the National Organizat

ion for Women are challenging the New Jersey plan in federal court , arguing tha

t the policy violates the privacy rights of welfare recipients . Despite those o

bjections , family cap supporters , which have included Democratic and minority 

legislators as well as conservatives , consider it an essential component of eff

orts to discourage long-term welfare dependency . `` It 's hard enough to escape

 welfare with one child , and each additional child makes it that much more diff

icult to stay in training or hold down work , '' said the senior administration 

official . Still , the official said , the administration did not consider the e

vidence from New Jersey decisive enough to require states to adopt the family ca

p . `` The early results from New Jersey show some promise but it 's too early t

o tell for sure what they mean , '' said the official . `` That 's the reason fo

r not mandating it nationwide . ''

 NEW YORK A new study strongly suggests that the United States ' brokerage firms

 collude with one another to rig over-the-counter trading and ensure themselves 

artificially high trading profits at the expense of investors . The study by two

 business professors examined price data for the stocks of 100 large companies t

raded on the NASDAQ market for over-the-counter stocks , and is believed to be t

he first to examine such price data in great detail . It came up with the seemin

gly bizarre finding that for 71 of these stocks including such giant companies a

s Apple Computer and Lotus Development prices were almost never posted on NASDAQ

 in `` odd eighths '' such as 22 1/8 , 22 3/8 , 22 5/8 and 22 7/8 . As a result 

, the spread between `` bid '' and `` asked '' prices in effect , the profit the

 brokerage firm makes on each share traded was almost never less than a quarter 

of a point , or 25 cents per share . The study , most of which was immediately c

ondemned by NASDAQ , comes as criticism of the fairness of over-the-counter trad

ing has escalated in recent months . It also comes at a time of fierce rivalry b

etween the highly computerized NASDAQ system and exchanges such as the New York 

Stock Exchange and American Stock Exchange . NASDAQ has used fairness and effici

ency as a key point of its marketing . The authors of the study Vanderbilt Unive

rsity business professor William Christie and Ohio State University business pro

fessor Paul Schultz made copies of their study available Wednesday . Christie sa

id it was accepted for publication in the next issue of Journal of Finance , due

 out in about six months . The journal is the official publication of the Americ

an Finance Association , an organization of professors who specialize in economi

cs , business and finance . The study initially examined data for the full year 

1991 , and then went back and confirmed the same results for 1994 to date , acco

rding to Christie . Richard G. Ketchum , chief operating officer of the National

 Association of Securities Dealers , which operates NASDAQ , in an interview did

 not dispute that the 71 stocks almost never trade at spreads narrower than 25 c

ents . But he said there were legitimate reasons . He said the study `` is irres

ponsible and in fact we believe it is slanderous . '' The authors emphasized tha

t they have no conclusive proof of collusion , which would violate securities la

ws . But after analyzing and rejecting other possible explanations , they stated

 `` we are unable to offer any other plausible explanation for the lack of odd-e

ighth quotes . '' ( Optional add end ) They noted that in rare instances when th

e stocks were quoted at such prices , the prices typically were posted for less 

than two minutes before being removed . The authors noted that there were severa

l ways dealers could punish maverick rivals who tried to narrow the spread , inc

luding the diversion of trades . In an interview , Christie said he believes the

 Securities and Exchange Commission should launch an investigation of OTC tradin

g . Brandon Becker , the SEC 's head of market regulation , could not immediatel

y be reached for comment late Wednesday . Wall Street firms that are large `` ma

rket makers '' in OTC stocks Wednesday did not seem eager to comment on the char

ge of price collusion . A spokesman for Merrill Lynch , the nation 's largest br

okerage firm , said the firm had no comment . Prudential Securities and Smith Ba

rney Shearson also did not respond to repeated calls seeking comment .

 In PLANT ( Peltz , Times ) sub for 8th graf ( Changing figures from 8,000 to 3,

000 ) xxx building 's rafters : The plant , which once employed as many as 3,000

 people , willn't be entirely vacated until the end of this year . PICK UP 9th g

raf : Hughes Aircraft xxx :

 Cigarette company lawyers for years ran a `` special projects '' division withi

n the putatively independent Council for Tobacco Research , steering grants to f

avored scientists whose research might be used to defend the industry from legal

 attack , internal documents show . Documents from the files of Brown & Williams

on Tobacco Co. show that top lawyers from the major cigarette companies during t

he 1970s and '80s made `` special project '' grants to scores of scientists and 

research organizations , bypassing a scientific advisory board of outside expert

s . `` The industry research effort has included special projects designed to fi

nd scientists and medical doctors who might serve as industry witnesses in lawsu

its or in a legislative forum , '' said B&W general counsel Ernest Pepples in a 

1978 memo to then company chairman Joseph E. Eden . Tobacco industry officials l

ong have asserted the council 's independence from business and legal concerns ,

 saying its grants are based on scientific merit alone . The claim has been cent

ral to the defense of smoker-death cases , in which industry lawyers have cited 

lavish support for the council as proof of an honest quest for knowledge about t

he effects of tobacco products . Neither Pepples nor officials of the Council fo

r Tobacco Research , based in New York , could be reached for comment . However 

, Tom Fitzgerald , a spokesman for Brown & Williamson , said : `` We believe the

 Council for Tobacco Research operates with integrity and funds meritorious rese

arch by independent scientists who are then encouraged to publish it . '' Counci

l materials are among reams of B&W documents recently provided to congressional 

tobacco foes Reps. Ron Wyden , D-Ore. , and Henry Waxman , D-Calif. , and to sev

eral news organizations , including the Los Angeles Times . B&W the No. 3 U.S. c

igarette company , which markets Barclay , Kool and other brands says the docume

nts were stolen by a former paralegal for a law firm that represents the company

 . The council will be the focus of a hearing Thursday before Waxman 's House su

bcommittee on health and environment . Originally called the Tobacco Industry Re

search Council , the CTR was the industry 's response to early studies linking s

moking and lung cancer a linkage so unspeakable for tobacco executives that B&W 

's parent , British-American Tobacco , for a time used the code word `` ZEPHYR '

' to describe the disease . The council was launched in 1954 with ads in 448 U.S

. newspapers . Under the heading , `` A Frank Statement to Cigarette Smokers , '

' the tobacco companies proclaimed : `` We accept an interest in people 's healt

h as a basic responsibility , paramount to every other consideration in our busi

ness . '' According to the announcement , the research council would get at the 

truth of the health allegations by investigating `` all phases of tobacco use an

d health . '' An advisory panel of experts `` disinterested in the cigarette ind

ustry '' would screen research proposals for scientific merit . In the years sin

ce , the body has provided more than $ 223 million in research grants , accordin

g to the council 's 1993 annual report . The new disclosures are not the first t

o raise questions about the council . Tobacco foes in the past have denounced it

 as a public relations ploy meant to promote the fiction of a continuing debate 

on the health effects of smoking . In a candid 1974 memo introduced in a trial o

ver the death several years ago of a New Jersey smoker , the research director o

f Lorillard Inc. acknowledged : `` Historically , the joint industry-funded smok

ing and health research programs hve been selected .. . for various purposes , s

uch as public relations , political relations , position for litigation , etc . 

'' But the newly leaked papers provide the most detailed information yet on the 

council 's role in industry legal strategy . The documents include dozens of let

ters from attorneys with two big industry law firms Shook , Hardy & Bacon in Kan

sas City , Mo. ; and Jacob , Medinger & Finnegan in New York seeking approval of

 CTR `` special project '' grants for various researchers . The letters were sen

t to Pepples and top lawyers for the other big cigarette companies . At least so

me of the `` special project '' grants went to researchers studying alternative 

explanations for high rates of heart disease and lung cancer among smokers . Law

yers for Shook , Hardy and Jacob , Medinger declined to discuss details of the s

pecial project grants , although Shook , Hardy attorney Gary Long said the resea

rch was not secret and grantees were allowed to publish their findings . The doc

uments show that at least one researcher rejected for regular funding from the c

ouncil turned to the lawyers instead . According to the papers , after Louisiana

 State University researcher Dr. Henry Rothschild was turned down in 1981 , indu

stry lawyers granted CTR special project funding for his research on genetic and

 environmental factors in lung cancer . Rothschild later testified for the indus

try before Congress , according to the documents , which include a 1978 journal 

article , co-authored by Rothschild , that criticized as dubious such advice fro

m doctors as `` the complete elimination of cigarettes . '' `` I don't think the

re were any restrictions placed on what we found , '' Rothschild said in a telep

hone interview Wednesday when asked about his special project funding . `` There

 was no quid pro quo . '' ( Begin optional trim ) A perennial recipient of speci

al project funds was Carl C. Seltzer , formerly of the Harvard University School

 of Public Health . The documents include four newspaper clippings and four tele

vision news transcripts chronicling a trip to Australia in May 1979 , in which S

eltzer 's view that smoking does not cause heart disease was widely quoted . `` 

Reports from colleagues in Australia and New Zealand indicate that Dr. Seltzer '

s visit ` was a great success , ' ' ' said a Shook , Hardy lawyer in a letter to

 Pepples . `` The CTR supported all kinds of research , '' including research ``

 contrary to the interests of the tobacco companies , '' Seltzer , now semi-reti

red , said in a telephone interview Wednesday . `` I think that 's a very import

ant thing . '' ( End optional trim ) Tobacco foes said the disclosures debunk in

dustry claims about the council . `` It 's an amazing situation , because to hav

e a group of lawyers basically selecting scientific research .. . completely goe

s against the normal process by which scientific investigations are conducted , 

'' said Stanton Glantz , a University of California , San Francisco medical prof

essor and longtime industry critic . The documents , he said , `` really reveal 

that the CTR as it was presented to the public was just a sham . ''

 WASHINGTON Astronomers peering through the Hubble Space Telescope at the core o

f a giant galaxy 50 million light years from Earth say they have found the first

 conclusive evidence for the existence of a super-massive `` black hole '' an ob

ject with gravity so huge it traps everything that comes near , even light . Nat