Jimmy Kimmel's 7-year-old son Billy just had his third (and hopefully last) open heart surgery. The ABC late-night host shared that Billy had the operation over Memorial Day weekend. Kimmel shared this photo of his son on Instagram and wrote, "We went into this experience with a lot of optimism and nearly as much fear and came out with a new valve inside a happy, healthy kid."
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00:00 Jimmy Kimmel's 7-year-old son, Billy, just had his third and hopefully last open-heart surgery.
00:05 The ABC late-night host shared that Billy had the operation over Memorial Day weekend.
00:10 Kimmel posted this photo of his son on Instagram and wrote,
00:14 "We went into this experience with a lot of optimism and nearly as much fear,
00:18 and came out with a new valve inside a happy, healthy kid."
00:21 He went on to praise the doctors, nurses and staff at Children's Hospital Los Angeles, where Billy was treated.
00:27 Kimmel said, "We hope you never need CHLA, but if you do,
00:30 know that they help families regardless of their ability to pay.
00:33 Thanks largely to the Affordable Care Act, another salute to the late Senator John McCain,
00:38 generous donations from companies like Disney, which I am proud to work for,
00:42 and especially from generous people like you."
00:44 He also thanked his friends, family and even strangers for their support of Billy.
00:48 Kimmel added, "Thank you to my wife Molly for being stronger than is reasonable for any mom to be.
00:53 And Billy, you are the toughest and funniest 7-year-old we know."
00:57 He went on to urge people to support Children's Hospital LA and their local children's hospitals.
01:02 Kimmel has previously been outspoken about Billy's health issues,
01:05 as his son was born with a heart defect and had to have his first open-heart surgery at just 3 days old.
01:10 For much more on this story, go to THR.com. This is The Hollywood Reporter News.