JOHN MCCAIN UNVEILS HEALTH CARE REFORM PLAN
ARLINGTON, VA -- In a speech today in Des Moines, Iowa, John McCain will unveil his vision for reforming America's health care system. McCain will outline a comprehensive plan to make the American health care system responsive to the needs of families, assuring quality care at lower costs by harnessing market competition.
"I believe Americans want to be part of a system that offers high quality care; that respects their individual dignity and is available at reasonable cost," said John McCain. "I offer a genuinely conservative vision for health care reform, which preserves the most essential value of American lives -- freedom. We can build a health care system that is more responsive to our needs and is delivered to more people at lower cost. We must reform the health care system to make it responsive to the needs of American families."
John McCain: Bold Solutions For American Health Care
John McCain believes health care reform should make the entire system responsive to the needs of American families -- assuring quality care at lower costs by harnessing market competition.
- Put Families In Charge Of Their Health Care Dollars And Give Them More Control Over Their Care While Improving The Quality Of Care And Lowering Costs By Promoting Competition.
- Reform The Tax Code To Eliminate The Bias Toward Employer-Sponsored Health Insurance And Provide All Individuals With A Refundable $2,500 Tax Credit ($5,000 For Families) As Incentive To Buy Health Insurance. Individuals purchasing innovative -- portable, multi-year -- policies that cost less than the full credit can deposit the remainder in health savings accounts.
- Promote Open Health Care Markets To Encourage Competition And Lower Costs To American Families. Promote open health care markets by permitting providers to practice nationwide, allowing families to purchase health insurance across state lines and through any willing sponsor, supporting innovative delivery systems, and thus promoting rapid deployment of 21st century information systems.
- Pass Tort Reform To Eliminate Frivolous Lawsuits And Excessive Damage Awards To Lower Health Care Costs. Provide a safe harbor for doctors that follow clinical guidelines and adhere to patient safety protocols.
- Promote Personal Responsibility And Prevention Of Chronic Conditions To Lower Health Care Costs And Foster A Healthier Population. We must do more to take care of ourselves to prevent chronic diseases when possible, and more to adhere to treatment after we are diagnosed with an illness. Childhood obesity, diabetes and high blood pressure are all on the rise. We must again teach our children about health, nutrition and exercise.
- Foster The Development Of Routes For Safe, Cheaper Generic Versions Of Drugs To Lower The Costs Of Vital Treatments. Develop safety protocols that permit re-importation to keep competition vigorous.
- Reform The Payment Systems In Medicare To Compensate Providers For Diagnosis, Prevention, And Care Coordination, Improving The Quality Of Care While Lowering Costs. Medicare should not pay for preventable medical errors or mismanagement.
