Jimmy Kimmel announced Monday that his youngest son had successfully undergone open heart surgery over Memorial Day weekend at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA).
The 56-year-old comedian posted a sweet photo of his seven-year-old son Billy smiling gently as he lay in a hospital bed while sharing the health news.
“This weekend, our boy Billy had his third (of three, we hope) open heart surgery,” Kimmel wrote in his lengthy caption.
“We went into this experience with a lot of optimism and almost as much fear and we came out with a new valve inside a happy, healthy child,” he continued.
Kimmel first revealed in 2017 that his then-son had undergone his first heart surgery, prompting him to advocate for health care and insurance reform.
Jimmy Kimmel announced Monday that his youngest son had successfully undergone open heart surgery over Memorial Day weekend at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA).
The 56-year-old comedian posted a sweet photo of his seven-year-old son Billy smiling gently as he lay in a hospital bed while sharing the health news.
Kimmel included praise for ‘Billy’s doctors, led by brilliant surgeon Vaughn Starnes, cardiologist Tim Casarez, and CHLA’s excellent, hard-working staff, doctors, nurses, and nurse practitioners, including, but not limited to, Misty, Ann, Sylvia, Dana , Caleigh, Nick, Bekah, Julie, Kenny, Caroline, Lisa, Stephanie, Ellize, Ivy, Pam and Carrie helped us with immeasurable kindness and expertise.’
The late-night host called it a “humiliating experience” to meet other “vulnerable” children and their parents, as well as the “miracle workers” who go to great lengths to “save” the young patients.
Kimmel made sure to praise his wife Molly “for being stronger than any mom is reasonable” and hailed young Billy as “the toughest (and funniest) 7-year-old we know.”
“There are so many parents and children who are not lucky enough to return home after five days,” he added. ‘Please share your love, hearts and prayers with them…’
The comedian tipped his hat to the late Sen. John McCain, who was the key vote that sank a bill that would have gutted the Affordable Care Act during the Trump administration.
He also noted that the health care law made it “largely” possible for CHLA to accept young patients regardless of their ability to pay.
Kimmel has spoken out about his young son’s heart condition in the past, including in an emotional speech in 2017, shortly after Billy’s birth.
Just three days after Billy was born, Kimmel announced on his show that the little one would need open-heart surgery for his congenital heart condition, tetralogy of Fallot with pulmonary atresia.
“Basically, the pulmonary valve was completely blocked and there is a hole in the wall between the left and right side of the heart,” Kimmel explained at the time.
“If your baby is going to die, and it doesn’t have to, it shouldn’t matter how much money you make,” he said during his impassioned speech.
But he also spoke in a lighter tone about Billy.
‘Poor boy. He not only had problems with his heart, but with my face,” he joked.
Kimmel advocated for reforms to reduce the cost of health insurance and health care just as the Republican-controlled Congress was debating a bill to repeal the ACA in 2017. The effort was ultimately thwarted by three Republican senators, including McCain.
The late Arizona senator had been noncommittal in the days leading up to the vote, but his iconic thumbs down ended the attempt to repeal the ACA.
Kimmel made sure to praise his wife Molly McNeary “for being stronger than is reasonable for any mom” and hailed young Billy as “the toughest (and funniest) 7-year-old we know.” photographed in 2018 in Los Angeles
In addition to Billy, they share a nine-year-old daughter, Jane, and Kimmel has two adult children, Katie, 32, and Kevin, 30, from his first marriage to Gina Maddy from 1988 to 2003; seen in 2018 in Los Angeles
Just three days after Billy’s birth, Kimmel announced on his show that the little one would need open-heart surgery for his congenital heart condition, tetralogy of Fallot with pulmonary atresia; Billy pictured at seven months old in December 2017, after his second surgery.
Billy’s third surgery is expected to be his last. When Kimmel announced his heart disease, he advocated for health care and insurance reform amid the GOP’s attempts to repeal the ACA.
Kimmel kept the updates positive, and in December 2017, he brought seven-month-old Billy on the show and announced that he had undergone his second open heart surgery.
By the way, Billy is doing very well. He has one more surgery, this is amazing, he had surgery a week ago. “They say he will probably be on track to win at least a bronze medal at the 2036 Olympics,” he announced.
Kimmel married Molly McNeary, who is executive producer and co-director of his show Jimmy Kimmel Live!, in 2013.
In addition to Billy, they share a nine-year-old daughter, Jane, and Kimmel has two adult children, Katie, 32, and Kevin, 30, from his first marriage to Gina Maddy from 1988 to 2003.