On Monday, comedian and talk show host Jimmy Kimmel set aside his jokes for a few minutes to share the very personal and heartbreaking story of his newborn son’s birth last week.
During a nearly 13-minute monolog, Kimmel choked back tears as he told how nurses first noticed his son’s heart murmur. Their diagnosis quickly lead to the discovery of a rare heart defect which consisted of a blockage of the pulmonary valve and tear in the heart wall.
“More doctors and nurses and equipment came in — it’s a terrifying thing,” Kimmel said. “It was the longest three hours of my life.”
Kimmel’s son had to undergo open-heart surgery at Children’s Hospital in Los Angeles and will need several more operations throughout his lifetime.
As the comedian thanked the amazing nurses and doctors who saved his child’s life, he also launched a powerful and passionate defense of Obamacare.
You know, before 2014, if you were born with congenital heart disease, like my son was, there’s a good chance you’d never be able to get health insurance, because you had a pre-existing condition,” Kimmel said.
He gave special thanks to Congress for having the courage to stand up to President Donald Trump who wanted to slash the budget of the National Institutes of Health by $1.2 Billion. Congress instead voted to increase their budget by $2 billion.
“Thank God our congressmen made a deal last night to not go along with that,” Kimmel said.
By the end of his monolog, Kimmel was in tears. He pleaded with Americans to cast aside petty partisan differences when it comes to healthcare.
“Let’s stop with the nonsense. This isn’t football. There are no teams,” Kimmel said. “We are the team. It’s the United States. Don’t let their partisan squabbles divide us on something every decent person wants.
“No parent should ever have to decide if they can afford to save their child’s life. It just shouldn’t happen. Not here.”
Here is the full 13-minute video, it’s long, but it’s guaranteed well worth your time.
Meanwhile, House republicans are poised to make their second attempt to destroy Obamacare by allowing states to apply for waivers for key provisions in the law. One such provision on the GOP’s chopping block is “community rating,” which would once again allow insurance companies to extort people with pre-existing conditions for more money.
Folks, as cool as it may seem for people to equally blame both sides for our problems. It should be crystal fucking clear by now which side doesn’t believe Americans have a right to healthcare.
Thank you, Jimmy Kimmel, for sharing your story and having the compassion to look out for other families who do not have the resources you have.