NC Blue Cross says it could have slashed rates 22% if Republicans had not repealed Obamacare's individual mandate

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina revealed this week that the company could have lowered health insurance rates up to 22 percent if Republicans in Congress had not repealed Obamacare's individual mandate.

The North Carolina insurance company announced on Tuesday that it would be lowering rates for Affordable Care Act policies by an average of 4.1 percent, according to Spectrum News.

But the company also said that rates could have been lowered substantially more if President Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress had not pushed through a tax cut that also eliminated the Affordable Care Act's individual mandate, which required taxpayers to either purchase insurance or pay a penalty.

"Blue Cross says it could have lowered average rates by another 18 percent if Congress and the Trump Administration hadn't eliminated the penalty for people who don't buy health [insurance]," Spectrum noted.