Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., used former Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price's recent remarks on Obamacare to rip Republicans trying to repeal the national healthcare law.
Price spoke at the World Heath Care Congress in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday and said the GOP's removal of the individual mandate will lead to higher healthcare costs unless a larger overhaul of the system takes place.
"That may help, but it still is nibbling at the side," Price said, according to the Washington Examiner. "And there are many, and I'm one of them, who believes that that actually will harm the pool in the exchange market, because you'll likely have individuals who are younger and healthier not participating in that market, and consequently, that drives up the cost for other folks within that market."
Schumer spun Price's words into a Democratic talking point.
"Former Secretary Price's comments and the new Commonwealth Fund study continue to remove any doubt that Republicans and the Trump administration own any and all increases in healthcare premiums for American consumers," Schumer said in a statement posted to his social media accounts.
"The American people know the Trump administration is responsible for the repeated sabotage of the healthcare system and that Republicans in Congress prioritized destroying our current system rather than improving it, which could lead to higher costs and fewer options for quality care. Just like their tax bill, Republicans have clearly sided with special corporate interests over the wishes of middle-class families."
The GOP tax bill signed into law in December contained a clause that erased the mandate that all Americans have health insurance or pay a fine, one of the signature pieces of the 2010 healthcare law. Republicans tried and failed to repeal the law last year after multiple attempts came up short.