CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Florida Democratic Chairman Rod Smith told the state’s delegates at a breakfast this morning that his 25-year-old son, a law school student, was diagnosed three weeks ago with a rare form of cancer and just completed his first round of chemotherapy.

Smith hailed the provision in the new federal health care law that requires insurers to allow young adults to remain on their parents’ policies until they are 26 and said the law, which has been unpopular with voters, should be a selling point for Democrats.

“I have been shocked and amazed to realize that the richest country in the world cannot survive without universal, affordable, available health care,” Smith said, drawing applause from the hundreds of delegates.

“Every Democratic president since Harry Truman has recognized that and every Republican presidential candidate has opposed it and if there’s one reason we ought to win this election, and there’s so many, it ought to be first and foremost we ought to take the message out there that affordable health care will affect your life because I’ve watched it and it’s happened to me. Take that message out there.”

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 4th, 2012 at 12:53 pm and is filed under 2012 campaigns, Democratic National Convention, George Bennett, Health Reform. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.