Sen. Ted Cruz might be in the market for a new health insurance plan.
Heidi Cruz, the wife of the newly announced Republican presidential candidate, is on unpaid leave from from her executive post at Goldman Sachs for the duration of her husband’s presidential campaign, and will not receive company benefits — including health insurance — during this time, a Goldman spokesperson told CNN.
Cruz has previously said that he receives his health insurance through his wife’s Goldman plan and has boasted about not needing to receive government health care benefits.
It’s unclear what health care plan the Texas senator will choose while his wife is on leave from Goldman. Cruz’s spokespeople didn’t immediately return requests for this information.
Lawmakers generally are required to receive insurance through Obamacare unless they’re able to obtain coverage from another source. Cruz has built a political brand by vocally opposing that system. If he were to go on the congressional health care plan, he could encounter plenty of criticism.
Cruz is an outspoken opponent of Obamacare — he once delivered a 21-hour floor speech on the need to defund the law — and his announcement on Monday coincides with the fifth anniversary of its enactment. He introduced a bill in February to repeal the law and highlighted the issue to rally the crowd attending his announcement speech at Liberty University Monday morning.
Bloomberg News first reported that Heidi Cruz would go on leave from Goldman.
The Goldman spokesperson said Heidi Cruz was in the office on Friday and Monday is expected to be her first day on unpaid leave. She is a managing director at the bank’s Houston office and has worked at the company since 2005.
CORRECTION: An initial version of this story incorrectly reported that Heidi Cruz is on paid leave from Goldman Sachs. She is on unpaid leave.
