The White House authorized Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price, who was accompanied by his wife, to use military aircraft during trips to Africa, Europe, and Asia this year, costing taxpayers more than $500,000, according to a report Thursday evening.
As a result, taxpayers have had to foot a bill totaling over $1 million for Price’s travels since May, Politico reported. An HHS spokeswoman said that Price reimbursed the agency for his wife’s travel.
Travel on military aircraft is generally granted only to the president, vice president, and Cabinet members who oversee national security issues, such as the secretary of defense and the secretary of state.
Price has already promised to reimburse the government for his own seats on private jets for domestic trips, amounting to approximately $52,000 out of the $400,000 total tab. The cost for the military flights is not included in that amount.
“I will take no more private charter flights as Secretary of HHS,” he said in a statement Thursday hours before the latest Politico report. “No exceptions … the taxpayers won’t pay a dime for my seat on those planes.”
Price said he would work with the Office of the Inspector General, which is investigating Price’s travel, along with those in his agency conducting an internal review.
Price also acknowledged that Trump was not pleased with his use of private jets to journey around the country.
“I look forward to gaining, regaining, the trust that the American people — some of the American people — may have lost in the activities that I took. And to not only regain the trust of the American people, but to gain the trust of the administration and the president,” Price said to Fox News’ Bret Baier on “Special Report” Thursday.
