As we all know, John McCain will be announcing his running mate today in Dayton, Ohio at Wright State University’s Nutter Center. Hopefully, Mr. McCain will remind all the un-employed G.M. (General Motors), and Delphi employees of his health care reform plan that he will unveil if he becomes our newly elected President. Dayton, OH has been hit hard in the last few months due to the declining economy, job loss, and G.M. announcing that it will pull out of the Dayton area in 2010. With this said, no wonder many Ohio individuals and families are either un-insured or underinsured. I think Senator McCain needs to touch on a few very important key factors for this visit to be considered a success (at least for Ohioans). In this state, John McCain’s health plan would be a huge selling point.

• Restore Control To Patients

We want a system of health care in which everyone can afford and acquire the treatment and preventative care they need. Health care should be available to all and not limited by where you work or how much you make. Families should be in charge of their health care dollars and have more control over care.

• Make Health Insurance Innovative, Portable & Affordable

John McCain will reform health care making it easier for individuals and families to obtain insurance. An important part of his plan is to use competition to improve the quality of health insurance with greater variety to match people’s needs, lower prices, and portability. Families should be able to purchase health insurance nationwide, across state lines.

John McCain proposes making insurance more portable. Americans need insurance that follows them from job to job. They want insurance that is still there if they retire early and does not change if they take a few years off to raise the kids.

John McCain will encourage and expand the benefits of Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) for families. When families are informed about medical choices, they are more capable of making their own decisions and often decide against unnecessary options. Health Savings Accounts take an important step in the direction of putting families in charge of what they pay for.

• A Specific Plan To Lower Costs

John McCain proposes a number of initiatives that can lower health care costs. If we act today, we can lower health care costs for families through common-sense initiatives. Within a decade, health spending will comprise twenty percent of our economy. This is taking an increasing toll on America’s families and small businesses. Even Senators Clinton and Obama recognize the pressure skyrocketing health costs place on small business when they exempt small businesses from their employer mandate plans.

Medicaid and Medicare: Reforming the payment system to cut costs. We must reform the payment systems in Medicaid and Medicare to compensate providers for diagnosis, prevention and care coordination. Medicaid and Medicare should not pay for preventable medical errors or mismanagement.

Transparency: Bringing transparency to health care costs. We must make public more information on treatment options and doctor records, and require transparency regarding medical outcomes, quality of care, costs and prices. We must also facilitate the development of national standards for measuring and recording treatments and outcomes.

• Choices Beyond Employer-Based Health Insurance Coverage

John McCain will reform the tax code to offer more choices beyond employer-based health insurance coverage. While still having the option of employer-based coverage, every family will receive a direct refundable tax credit - effectively cash - of $2,500 for individuals and $5,000 for families to offset the cost of insurance. Families will be able to choose the insurance provider that suits them best and the money would be sent directly to the insurance provider. Those obtaining innovative insurance that costs less than the credit can deposit the remainder in expanded Health Savings Accounts.

• Ensure Care For High Risk Patients

John McCain’s plan cares for the traditionally uninsurable. John McCain understands that those without prior group coverage and those with pre-existing conditions have the most difficulty on the individual market, and we need to make sure they get the high-quality coverage they need.

• Confront Long Term Challenges

John McCain will develop a strategy for meeting the challenge of a population needing greater long-term care. There have been a variety of state-based experiments such as Cash and Counseling or The Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) that are pioneering approaches for delivering care to people in a home setting. Seniors are given a monthly stipend which they can use to hire workers and purchase care-related services and goods. They can get help managing their care by designating representatives, such as relatives or friends, to help make decisions. It also offers counseling and bookkeeping services to assist consumers in handling their programmatic responsibilities.

A Call To Action: McCain’s Health Care Plan