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Jimmy Kimmel’s Takedown of Senator Bill Cassidy’s New Health-Care Bill Gets Personal

Back in May, it appeared as though Jimmy Kimmel might have struck the final blow against the GOP health-care plan, with his sympathetic story about his baby’s multiple open-heart surgeries and his impassioned plea to the government to protect all children in similar circumstances. In response, Republican Senator Bill Cassidy went on a publicity tour, calling for a health-care plan that “passed the Jimmy Kimmel test” (his own words), which would guarantee care for any child born with a preexisting condition. Among the promises Cassidy made were coverage for all, no discrimination based on preexisting conditions, lower premiums for middle-class families, and no lifetime caps. Yet last week Cassidy and Senator Lindsey Graham introduced a new plan to replace Obamacare that Kimmel is not impressed with.

“This new bill actually does pass the Jimmy Kimmel test, but a different Jimmy Kimmel test. In this one, your child with a preexisting condition will get the care he needs if, and only if, his father is Jimmy Kimmel,” the comedian said in his opening monologue. “Otherwise, you might be screwed.” Kimmel continued to bash Cassidy as he tore into the ways the bill would affect families that, unlike Kimmel, cannot afford to pay for costly surgeries for their newborns, or to pick up the bill later if their child reaches his or her lifetime coverage limits as an infant. Kimmel called on his audience to contact their representatives, saying, “You can’t just click ‘like’ on this video.” He also offered Cassidy a return visit to Jimmy Kimmel Live!, though not without a warning: “There’s a new Jimmy Kimmel test. It’s called a lie-detector test.”

Kimmel’s Takedown of Cassidy Health-Care Bill Gets Personal