(CNN) Sen. Bernie Sanders did not hold anything back Thursday when he condemned the House passage of the Republican-backed bill to replace Obamacare.

"If the bill passed today in the House became law, thousands of Americans would die, because they would no longer have access to health care," Sanders told CNN's Anderson Cooper on "AC360."

The Vermont lawmaker and former presidential candidate claimed the Obamacare replacement provides billions of dollars in tax breaks to the wealthiest 2%.

"What kind of health care bill are we talking about when you throw 24 million people off of health insurance," Sanders said.

Cooper asked Sanders to weigh in on health care giant Aetna pulling out of Obamacare in Virginia, citing major losses.

Read More