U.S. President Donald Trump announces his Secretary of Homeland Security nominee Kirstjen Nielsen in the East Room of the White House in Washington, U.S., October 12, 2017. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House said late on Thursday that it cannot lawfully pay subsidies to health insurance companies under the Obamacare health law, prompting howls of protests from Democratic lawmakers.

A White House statement said based on guidance from the Justice Department, “the Department of Health and Human Services has concluded that there is no appropriation for cost-sharing reduction payments to insurance companies under Obamacare.”

“In light of this analysis, the Government cannot lawfully make the cost-sharing reduction payments,” the statement said.