Sanders to Tim Ryan: ‘I do know that, I wrote the damn bill’

White House hopeful Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) rebuked his presidential opponent Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) after Ryan questioned how comprehensive his “Medicare for All” platform would be.

Sanders maintained that his Medicare for All platform would offer more comprehensive health care coverage for people who would eventually lose their private plans, noting that it would include dental and vision plans for seniors as well as other facets, to which Ryan responded “You don’t know that, Bernie.”{mosads}

“I do know that, I wrote the damn bill,” Sanders fired back to applause, referencing the Medicare for All bill he’s introduced in the Senate.

Bernie Sanders on Medicare for All: “I wrote the damn bill.” pic.twitter.com/ruRdPklxwz

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) July 31, 2019

The exchange was part of a longer, fiery debate among the field about the federal government’s role in providing health care, with Sanders and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass) supporting a Medicare for All platform

But several moderates touted different plans that would allow Americans to keep private insurance and either expand the Affordable Care Act or include a public option to supplement private plans.

“Why do we got to be the party of taking something away from people?” former Rep. John Delaney (D-Md.), a staunch centrist, asked during the debate.

Polling has showed that health care has emerged as a top issue for Democratic voters, though what should be the solution to rising premiums and scant coverage has produced a sharp divide within the primary field.