Richard Gephardt: “I want to start my closing with a story tonight. Twenty-one years ago, almost this month, my son was diagnosed with…”

“I want to start my closing with a story tonight. Twenty-one years ago, almost this month, my son was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and I remember talking to the doctors in the hall that night when he was diagnosed and thinking that we didn't have a chance. But in the months ahead, because of their work and their dedication and nurses and doctors in hospitals all over the country, we worked with him, and he prayed. And tonight he is alive. He graduated from college last May. We were lucky. We had insurance. We were covered. There are so many people that were in the hospital with us had kids with cancer who didn't have coverage, because they couldn't afford it. I have thought many times if he had gotten cancer today, would we have been able to afford it? I was a young lawyer in St. Louis. I didn't make a lot. Could we afford it today? Would he have had coverage? Would he have been able to get treatment under the preexisting conditions rules that are in many policies today? I am not sure he would. He called me the other night. He still has lots of problems from his cancer. He got a job after he graduated from college, and he was telling me he was afraid to go to the doctor to get these problems taken care of because there was a preexisting condition clause in his policy now. He has got to wait 6 months before he is covered. We can do better than this.”