Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain (Ariz.) on Monday at the Miami Children's Hospital promoted his health care proposal, which he said would "put families in charge," USA Today reports (Jackson, USA Today, 4/29).
McCain has proposed to replace a tax break for employees who receive health insurance from employers with a refundable tax credit for the purchase of private coverage and to allow the purchase of health insurance across state lines -- both of which he maintains would promote competition among health insurers, reduce costs and improve quality.
According to McCain, the proposal is "responsive to the needs of American families -- not the government, not the insurance companies, not the tort lawyers, not even the doctors and hospitals" (CNN.com, 4/28). He added, "I've made it very clear that what I want is for families to make decisions about their health care, not government," which he cited as the major difference between his proposal and the plans announced by Democratic presidential candidates Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton (N.Y.) and Barack Obama (Ill.) (Reinhard, Miami Herald, 4/29).
Health care is "too expensive," McCain said, adding, "These costs are a threat to the ability of Americans to have health insurance, the gateway to better health care" (CNN.com, 4/28). In addition, he said, "We must move away from a system that is fragmented and pays for expensive procedures, toward one where a family has a medical home, providers coordinate their efforts and take advantage of technology to do so cheaply, and where the focus is on affordable quality outcomes." McCain added, "America can have a health care system that is characterized by better prevention, coordinated care, electronic health records, cutting edge treatments -- and lower costs" (Reuters, 4/29).
Criticism
In response to the comments from McCain, the Democratic National Committee said that he is "promising four more years of the Bush health care agenda" (CNN.com, 4/28). Critics argue that the McCain proposal would limit access to health insurance for low-income residents and those with pre-existing medical conditions. In addition, they maintain that his proposal would prompt health insurers to relocate to states with fewer coverage requirements.
On Tuesday, McCain will deliver a policy speech at the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute in Tampa, Fla., that will focus on health care. According to an advance copy of the speech obtained by the Associated Press, McCain will argue that his proposal "would help change the whole dynamic of the current system, putting individuals and families back in charge, and forcing companies to respond with better services at lower costs" (Quaid, AP/Houston Chronicle, 4/29).
Clinton Opinion Piece