Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Senator John McCain released his proposed health care package for U.S. veterans over the weekend, and among the most prominent aspects of his plan are a more rapid response to veterans' medical needs, a Veterans' Care Access Card and a targeted effort to address the needs of female veterans who are the victims of sexual assault. While veterans groups say they have no objections to the senator's proposals, they are wary that a plan to send vets to private doctors will drive up the price of government-funded care.

Among the specifics of McCain's plan:

· To aid vets who can't get to a Veterans Affairs hospital because of geographical constraints, long waiting lists or a lack of specialized facilities, he proposes that no vet have to drive more than an hour for care and that they receive routine care within a week, urgent care within 24 hours and specialty care within a month.

· A Veterans' Care Access Card would be created, which would supplement ordinary VA care for low-income veterans and those with illnesses or injuries incurred during military service, permitting those who can't get "timely and appropriate" care at a VA facility to receive care at a private one.

· He would build on his co-authored Wounded Warrior Act, which was among the first legislation to address injuries specific to the modern war on terror by providing enhanced screening and treatment.

· He called for a better response from the VA to the "specialized health care needs of women veterans, including victims of sexual assault."

· He would establish a Wounded Warrior Resource Center, which would give vets accessible information and clear pathways to rehabilitation, as well as document the long-term needs of the veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan.

· He would expand educational programs for family members of veterans to teach them how to properly care for their injured or ill loved ones.

· An eight-point plan would be enacted to overhaul the Veterans Disability system, which includes comprehensive, ongoing training for VA employees who process claims, more accountability for claims processors, converting the claims-processing system into a paperless one that will provide instant search capability, and providing vets with disabilities the proper treatment, rehabilitation and training they need to return to productive, fulfilling lives.

Senator McCain, who is a decorated veteran of the Vietnam War, where he sustained serious injuries as a captive in a prisoner-of-war camp, has also proposed what he called an "aggressive program to reintegrate veterans into civilian society." That plan includes his recent support for the "GI Bill for the 21 Century," as well as an increase in outreach to homeless veterans to provide transitional housing, proper health and disability benefits, and job training. It also includes efforts to provide meaningful employment to veterans in federal positions and ensure that they are not discriminated against in hiring by employers.

Finally, McCain vowed to continue working to increase the death gratuity benefit for the families of veterans who are killed in combat, an effort he has supported in the past, including in 2003, when he co-sponsored legislation to double the payment.

Joe Davis, Director of Public Affairs for the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the U.S. said he had no real objections to what McCain was proposing, but he vowed to keep a close eye on it. "These are all things that are either going on already or need more 'oomph' to get them going in Washington," said Davis. "There's nothing controversial about it."

The one aspect of McCain's proposal that Davis said he and many of his cohorts are closely monitoring is the Access Card, which Davis wants to make sure doesn't end up driving veterans away from the VA to the private sector for care. "There is merit to helping some veterans who live in extremely rural areas to get care," he said. "But we want to make sure it's not the start of a process that will raise medical prices because the VA will have to pay that non-VA doctor's fees, which will not be the same as the bill if the government provided the care."

Rival presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama has proposed a plan that has a number of similar elements. His includes a vow to allow more veterans to access VA care by rolling back a 2003 ban that excluded some "modest income" veterans, and would increase care for polytrauma vision impairment, prosthetics, spinal cord injuries and women's health. Additionally, it would establish a "zero tolerance" policy for veterans falling into homelessness by expanding programs to help them avoid reaching that status.

Obama has also pledged to fight employment discrimination against vets, help make the transition to civilian life easier, update paper records to an electronic system and fully fund the VA. He has also vowed to expand veteran centers and improve mental health treatment and traumatic brain injury care.

Davis said both plans offer benefits that are very good for veterans but that the "hardest test" will be getting the items on a budget and passed through Congress.

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