Donald Trump has praised Australia's universal public health care system just moments after celebrating the passage of a bill that could leave millions of Americans without health coverage.
"We have a failing health care - I shouldn't say this to our great gentleman and my friend from Australia, because you have better health care than we do," Donald Trump said during a meeting in New York with Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.
The remark came after the US Republicans narrowly approved legislation to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, introduced under former president Barack Obama.
The act, known as Obamacare, was introduced to improve access to health care by requiring all Americans to have health insurance, and offering subsidies to make coverage more affordable.
The health care reform that Trump wants to bring into law would leave more than 24 million people without health insurance, according to a report by the independent Congressional Budget Office.
The US is the only developed country that does not provide minimum health coverage for every citizen and taxpayer, with the exception of Medicare (for retirees) and Medicaid (for low-income earners), which could also suffer cutbacks under Trump.
In contrast, Australia's Medicare covers every citizen.
Following Trump's remarks, Senator Bernie Sanders took aim at the apparent discord between words and policy.
"Thank you Mr. Trump for admitting that universal health care is the better way to go. I'll be sure to quote you on the floor of the Senate," he wrote on Twitter.
