LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — The federal government is now shut down after Congress failed to reach a deal on funding legislation.
While the average length of government shutdowns, looking back to the 1970s, is eight days, the last shutdown from 2018 to 2019 lasted 35 days.
With no clear timeline of how long this shutdown will last, we want to answer some questions you may have as to how all this affects you.
Medicare and Medicaid programs and services will also continue uninterrupted, though staffing shortages could mean delays for some services, like the mailing of Medicare cards. The government has enough money to fund Medicaid for the first quarter of the next fiscal year, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. This is likely the same case for those receiving Social Security benefits.
Federal employees and military personnel will receive back pay when the government reopens, as required by a 2019 law.
During the last shutdown, Transportation Security Administration workers were classified as essential, meaning those who had flights would still be able to make them.
In the past, the National Park Service has stopped operations during a government shutdown. That would include Lake Mead and Death Valley. This will also apply similarly to the Department of the Interior, which manages Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area.
U.S. Postal Service operations will not be interrupted in the event of a government shutdown, and all Post Offices will remain open for business as usual.