Personally? I'd have acquiesced to Ford's demands; yes, kill Han off -- but let it be a major part of the plot. One of his major complaints was "he's got no mama, he's got no papa"; why didn't they just do something like they were planning with the Brackett version of Empire? Give him a papa, or a step-papa; a rich and influential man, someone the Rebel Alliance wants to get to before the final fight -- thus giving them a slightly darker motive for helping Luke and the gang rescue Han at the start of the film. In the course of this, at the beginning of the third act, Han would die -- sacrificing his life for this man.

See? Something for him to do besides mushy love dialogue; Ford certainly would've put in more of an effort with even that.