Jimmy Kimmel Shares Touching Clip Of Son’s Surgery & Urges Viewers To ‘Vote With Your Heart’
On Thursday’s episode of his late-night show, Jimmy Kimmel opened up about his son, William “Billy” John, and his heart surgeries. In the same segment, the TV host urged viewers to go to the polls on Election Day in order to protect the Affordable Care Act.
Kimmel started off his monologue by touching on the issue of pre-existing conditions and healthcare.
“I want to bring us back to focus on something we can’t afford to forget, and that is healthcare,” he said. “The vast majority of this country believes that health insurance should cover Americans with pre-existing conditions.”
The Jimmy Kimmel Live! host then played a touching clip detailing Billy’s health battle. The video, made by Kimmel’s wife Molly McNearney, documented the child’s journey with a series of intimate photos and clips.
As the heartfelt video explained, Billy — who is now 3 years old — was diagnosed with Tetralogy of Fallot at birth, a congenital heart defect which counts as a pre-existing condition under the Affordable Care Act. McNearney wrote that the child underwent three heart surgeries, and has already had over 60 doctor appointments during his short life.
After addressing President Donald Trump’s views on the Affordable Care Act and what could happen if pre-existing conditions were to be excluded, Kimmel’s wife penned a plea to American mothers, asking them to vote.
Toward the end of the video, the family shared recent pictures and videos of Billy, who seems to be healthy and in good spirits.
“We are raising him to fight for less fortunate kids. Americans take care of one another. Vote with your heart,” the Kimmel family wrote.
After the clip aired on TV last night, viewers were quick to react to Kimmel’s touching video of Billy on social media.
“I’m crying a river. Didn’t know Billy had heart surgery,” one viewer tweeted.
“So moving. And truly a reason to vote,” another viewer shared on Twitter.
The TV host is no stranger to using his platform to highlight the importance of voting, especially explaining why viewers shouldn’t re-elect President Trump. As reported by The Inquisitr, Kimmel recently pleaded with Americans to vote Trump out, following his handling of the George Floyd protests.
During an episode on May 29, the host asked all citizens — Republican, Democratic, or anything else in between — not to vote for the Republican presidential candidate in November. In the same monologue, Kimmel also criticized the president for glorifying violence and threatening to shoot citizens, specifically black Americans.
