Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: The United States government shut down on October 1 as Republicans and Democrats remain locked in a tussle over health care funding.
The impasse has forced hundreds of thousands of federal workers off the job, while iconic national sites from the Liberty Bell in Pennsylvania to Pearl Harbour in Hawaii have been shuttered, according to media reports.
At the heart of the dispute is a fight over whether subsidies under the Affordable Care Act should be extended. Democrats insist the support is vital to prevent insurance premiums from spiking, while Republicans argue that the spending bill must not include what they frame as “handouts” connected to immigration and health care. Democrats refused to support a shortterm spending bill unless it included funding to extend subsidies under the Affordable Care Act.
While some moderate senators have signalled openness to talks, neither side has budged. With no compromise reached before the deadline, the government’s funding lapsed, triggering the current shutdown.
According to the Congressional Budget Office, the shutdown is costing roughly $400 million every single day. Around 750,000 federal workers are furloughed, while “essential” staff such as military personnel, border security, and air traffic controllers are working without pay. Essential services such as the military, Medicare and Medicaid continue, but many civilian services are either suspended or disrupted.
On Wall Street, the S&P 500 and Dow Jones each fell 0.6% immediately after funding lapsed, while global markets reacted cautiously. Investors fear disruption to key data releases, including the monthly jobs report, which could be delayed.
