Story highlights The bill Price supports includes a tax break for health care CEOs

He said the current rules are unfair

Washington (CNN) Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price defended Wednesday a tax cut for health insurance CEOs in the Republican plan he supports to repeal and replace part of Obamacare.

"This is the federal government before saying to a certain sector of society, a certain individual, you can't make what that company is willing to pay you," Price said in a CNN town hall event moderated by CNN's Wolf Blitzer and Dana Bash.

Price was making the case for the American Health Care Act, which President Donald Trump and House Speaker Paul Ryan have embraced . The bill would repeal many elements of Obamacare, including a limit of $500,000 on tax deductions for health insurance executives. By rolling back this Obamacare rule, the bill would effectively put in place a tax cut for health industry executive pay.

Price argued that the Obamacare tax rule was unfair and "dangerous," saying it "singled out health care executives." He described the existing tax rule as a punishment.

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