Elizabeth Edwards raps McCain health plan

ARLINGTON, VA. -- Elizabeth Edwards, the wife of former Democratic presidential contender John Edwards, said she and John McCain have one thing in common: "Neither one of us would be covered by his health policy," she said.

Edwards lodged her criticism of the presumptive Republican presidential nominee's health plan Saturday at the annual meeting of the Association of Health Care Journalists.

Under McCain's plan, Edwards said, insurance companies "wouldn't have to cover pre-existing conditions like melanoma and breast cancer."

McCain has been treated for melanoma, the most serious type of skin malignancy. Edwards in 2004 was diagnosed with breast cancer, and she announced one year ago that it had returned and spread into her bones, meaning it was no longer curable.

McCain's plan focuses on offering new tax breaks to help people purchase insurance individually. But critics say it avoids giving insurance companies requirements on whom they must insure and how much they may charge.

Such a plan would make it difficult for people with pre-existing health problems but who aren't covered by a government or job-related plan to buy an individual health plan, Edwards said.

Cancer survivors are routinely denied health insurance when they try to purchase it as individuals, health experts say.

Doug Holtz-Eakin, senior policy adviser for McCain, said Saturday that Edwards' comments were disappointing and said they suggest she did not understand the comprehensive nature of McCain's proposals.

He said McCain's policy would harness "the power of competition to produce greater coverage for Americans."

Because McCain's plan would lower the cost of health care through competition, he said, it would reduce costs for consumers with or without pre-existing health problems.