HEALTH

Garamendi Calls for Creation of Single Alliance: State Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi urged lawmakers to put California’s more than 30 million residents under one massive purchasing alliance and create a new state agency if President Clinton’s health reform plan is enacted. Garamendi testified in Los Angeles at the first of a series of hearings held by a Senate-Assembly conference committee to develop legislation that ultimately will serve as the state’s version of Clinton’s national health reform proposals. Health alliances are a key part of Clinton’s proposal. Under the plan, regional health alliances would collect health insurance payments from businesses and individuals and then use the pooled money to buy health care services from providers.