Former Vice President Joe Biden Joe BidenFormer Pence aide: White House staffers discussed Trump refusing to leave office Progressive group buys domain name of Trump's No. 1 Supreme Court pick Bloomberg rolls out M ad buy to boost Biden in Florida MORE and Sen. Bernie Sanders Bernie SandersSirota reacts to report of harassment, doxing by Harris supporters Republicans not immune to the malady that hobbled Democrats The Hill's Morning Report - Sponsored by Facebook - Republicans lawmakers rebuke Trump on election MORE (I-Vt.) tangled over health care at the outset of Thursday night’s Democratic presidential primary debate, with Biden labeling the Vermont Independent a “socialist.”

“For a socialist you got a lot more confidence in corporate America than I do,” Biden quipped, slamming Sanders for reportedly saying that employers would be more amenable to giving employees insurance if they form a union.

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Sanders fired back, suggesting Biden’s proposal could lead families to “financial ruin” if they have to deal with a serious illness like cancer.

#NEW: Former VP Joe Biden goes after Sen. Bernie Sanders: "For a socialist, you've got a lot more confidence in corporate America than I do."pic.twitter.com/Ws77i86ig6 — Alex Salvi (@alexsalvinews) September 13, 2019

“Every single person who is diagnosed with cancer or any other disease can automatically become part of this plan. They will not go bankrupt because of that,” Biden responded.

Health care has emerged as a chief fissure among Democrats, with Biden supporting expanding the Affordable Care Act while making a public option available to those who want it while Sanders pushes a “Medicare for All” platform that would eliminate private insurance, a plan centrists have panned for its cost and possibility of taking away certain people’s plans.

The "socialist" label has loomed large over the primary field, with the GOP eager to point to progressive policies like Medicare for All as evidence that a Democratic president would lurch the country to the left.