Why Is Jimmy Kimmel Against Graham-Cassidy Obamacare Repeal Bill?
Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel criticized the latest Republican effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act on his show Tuesday.
Kimmel said the Graham-Cassidy bill — named for its two main sponsors, Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA) — failed the "Jimmy Kimmel test" that Cassidy had himself proposed in May on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!"
"This new bill actually does pass the Jimmy Kimmel test," the show host said in a monologue taped for Tuesday’s night’s broadcast of his program. "But with this one, your child with a pre-existing condition will get the care he needs, if — and only if —his father is Jimmy Kimmel."
The host had spoken about the importance of equality in the health care system in May shortly after the birth of his son Billy, who was born with a heart condition that required immediate surgery.
Cassidy, appearing on the show then, had said any repeal efforts had to pass the "Jimmy Kimmel test," ensuring a child like Billy would have all the necessary resources for survival.
Cassidy had also promised that any new healthcare bill would provide coverage for all, with no discrimination based on pre-existing conditions, lower premiums for middle-class families and no lifetime caps.
Kimmel said Tuesday that the new bill covers none of these conditions.
The Brooklyn-born host said: "This is a bad bill. But don't take my words for it. Here are just some of the organizations that oppose this Graham-Cassidy Bill. American Cancer Society, American Diabetes Association, American Heart Association, American Lung Association, Arthritis Foundation..."
Kimmel asked his viewers whether they trusted these organizations or Cassidy. Kimmel also urged the audience to reach out to the bill's sponsors to let them know that that it should not be passed.
Kimmel also said that healthcare is "complicated" and that its details can be "exceptionally confusing."
He said the Republicans are banking on this to deceive the common people into trusting the bill, and they were just "taking care of the people who give them money like insurance companies."
"And we’re all just looking at our phones and liking photos on Instagram – while they’re voting on whether people can afford to keep their children alive or not!"
The Graham-Cassidy bill was released last week and intends to eliminate or overhaul major sections of the health reform law, CNN Money reported.
It was proposed after three failed GOP repeal attempts in the Senate.
Republicans have a deadline till Sept. 30 till which they can use their 2017 budget reconciliation bill as a way to pull apart Obamacare with a simple majority in the Senate, according to CNN Money.
Senate Republicans need 50 votes to get this bill passed, which implies only two Republicans can defect.
Not just Kimmel, even analysts believe that the new bill would lead to millions of Americans losing coverage, and will have the same repercussions as previous Republican repeal bills.
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