After the United States government failed to pass a new budget on October 1, the government entered a national shutdown. As of November 4, the government has been shut down for 35 days, leaving more than one million federal workers unpaid.
“The big cause of this shutdown is arguments over healthcare,” junior Arya Bhattacharya said. “Democrats are outnumbered in Congress, making it more difficult for their ideas to get passed, which gives Republicans more power.”
According to the BBC, Congress must agree on a budget to send to the president for it to be signed into law. While Republicans currently hold the majority control in both the Senate and House of Representatives, Democrats were still able to block the bill from passing in the Senate. Democrats have been advocating for the budget to include the extension of expiring tax credits that would make health insurance cheaper, a reversal of Trump’s cuts to Medicaid, and oppose spending cuts towards government health agencies.
“We’re waiting for Congress to pass a budget that would fund all of the ongoing functions of the government,” government teacher Ruth Narvaiz said. “The longest shutdown in history was during the first Trump administration, and it was 35 days. I think this shutdown could go on for a long time.”
The last shutdown took place from December 22, 2018, to January 25, 2019, and was caused by Democrats’ refusal to pass a budget that would include funding for Trump to build a wall along the US-Mexico border. Trump ultimately agreed to a temporary spending deal that would reopen the government without funding for the wall.
“Even after the government reopens, there will be a lingering effect due to blame for the shutdown,” Narvaiz said. “The shutdown could affect elections, depending on who Americans think is responsible for it. Right now, the people most affected by the shutdown are park rangers, the military, and air traffic controllers. However, traffic controllers and TSA are getting the most attention because that’s where the public is most affected.”
Without an approved budget, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL), the government can only allocate a limited number of funds for services the president deems essential for public safety or national security. This means that many government workers must continue working without pay until a budget is passed or workers are furloughed and are required to receive pay after the new budget is approved.
“The government shutdown specifically targets government workers,” Bhattacharya said. “I know a lot of them are being sent home and the ones that aren’t being sent home are working for no pay at all. All this is happening while the government fights over healthcare cuts and the Big Beautiful Bill was passed recently which already brough massive cuts to healthcare and Medicaid.”
As stated in an article by NBC News, core healthcare programs such as Medicare and Medicaid will keep functioning because their funding is built into the law; however, the shutdown does impact whether certain healthcare programs continue once the new budget is agreed upon. Telehealth services, for instance, provided by Medicare, expired when the shutdown began, with the exception being for people living in rural areas, people who experienced a stroke or are on dialysis. Additionally, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and local health clincis currnetly have the funding to keep going for the next year but if the government does not allocate money in the new budget for these programs, challenges for families relying on these services will arise.
“It’s very complicated,” junior Israel Chavez said. “Healthcare is definitely important and something everyone needs and it’s hard when legislators are playing with people’s lives. Students should care about it because it affects people either directly or it affects someone you know.”
According to Every Texan, last year, Texas was home to over 255,000 federal workers, and currently, Texas has 114,000 active duty military members who are being required to work without pay, due to the shutdown. With Texas having the highest uninsured rate in the nation, 22%, the shutdown will impact Texans who rely on government aid programs. For instance, 3.4 million Texans utilize the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) to buy food, and 41 Million Texans use Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) to access healthcare.
“Students should use news outlets and social media to stay informed because it definitely helps them be prepared in case anything happens that might impact them,” Chavez said. “This shutdown could influence more people to get involved in politics because this is such an important issue that impacts many different people. At the end of the day, Congress should be considering every person they represent and listening so that they can make the best decision for their people.”
