Three Senate Democrats are asking for the confirmation hearing of President-elect Trump’s nominee to run the Department of Health and Human Services to be delayed after several reports about his trades of health industry stocks.
Three members of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee want to delay the panel’s Wednesday hearing for Rep. Tom Price’s nomination to lead HHS after reports of the Georgia Republican’s “questionable stock trading.” The request comes after reports that Price, an orthopedic surgeon, bought shares in a medical device maker days before introducing legislation that benefited that company.
Sens. Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin, Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Al Franken of Minnesota called for the delay. It is the latest push by Democrats to delay Price’s confirmation hearing until an ethics investigation is completed, as Democratic leaders in the House and Senate previously asked for a probe into the stock trades.
Price traded tens of thousands of dollars worth of shares of health-related companies during the past four years, the Wall Street Journal reported in late December. Over the same period, Price authored or co-authored dozens of related bills in the House.
Allowing the hearing to continue “with questions about his ethical qualifications left unanswered would send an early, clear, and deeply troubling signal that the Senate’s critical oversight functions will be given a back seat to the demands of the Trump administration,” said a letter to Chairman Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn.
Alexander was unavailable for comment.
CNN reported Monday that Price bought between $1,001 to $15,000 worth of shares since last march in Zimmer Biomet. Less than a week later, Price introduced legislation that delayed an Obama administration rule for hip and knee implants, which Zimmer makes.
Trump’s transition team fought back against the allegation, calling it “junk reporting.”
“Any effort to connect the introduction of bipartisan legislation by Dr. Price to any campaign contribution is demonstrably false,” according to a statement from Phil Blando, transition spokesman.
The transition team noted that Price didn’t run the account that purchased the stocks at the time. It added that Price disclosed the sale right after learning about it, per House rules.
Some Senate Republicans leapt to defend Price.
“It was a purchase he made on his behalf and didn’t know,” said Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., on the Senate floor Tuesday.
