The Government Shut Down. What Happens Next?

AARP top lobbyist Bill Sweeney spells out how services important to older adults will function

Molly Snow and Miriam Cross,

AARP

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Published October 01, 2025

the captiol building with a social security card and a medicare card

AARP (Getty Images, 3)

The U.S. government officially shut down on Oct. 1 after lawmakers failed to pass a budget measure to keep federal programs and offices open.

Now, agencies must stop any government work that is unfunded. That also means federal employees whose work is not related to public safety or deemed essential by law will be furloughed, leaving agencies with only a few staff members to carry out critical operations.

Federal benefit programs like Social Security and Medicare are considered mandatory spending and will continue to issue payments, although customer service may be less responsive and certain services, such as new card processing, may be delayed.

However, the longer a shutdown goes on, the more uncertain these outcomes are, as programs that rely on backup funding see their reserves dwindle.

To discuss the possible impact of the shutdown on programs and services older adults rely on, we sat down with Bill Sweeney, AARP’s senior vice president of government affairs.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

So the government shut down. How long is this likely to last?

It’s really hard to predict because circumstances can always change.

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A shutdown that lasts just a couple of days, or maybe a week, is a different thing entirely than one that lasts for a long time. The longest one we’ve ever had lasted 35 days, and that was in 2018 through the beginning of 2019. But even then, people still got their Medicare. They still received Social Security.

The question is: How long are federal employees willing to work for free before they go looking for a new job? That is fundamentally the one backstop on a government shutdown. At some point, people say, “We’re not going to keep working [without pay].’”

How is this shutdown different from the ones we’ve had in the past? Is this likely to follow past protocols, or do you expect it to be different?

I wish I could predict this, but every shutdown is a little different, and it can change from day to day. Sometimes only part of the government is shut down, and sometimes most of the government is shut down. As with every shutdown, the White House and the Cabinet agencies have broad power to determine which parts of the government are deemed “essential,” meaning those services will continue, although the federal workers won’t be paid. That makes it incredibly difficult to predict exactly how a shutdown might affect different parts of the government.

What services are affected by a shutdown that might impact older Americans?

It’s important to remember that your Social Security payment will still come; Medicare and Medicaid should not be impacted much. Beyond that, it’s very hard to say — and what is in place one day might not be in place the next. It’s also important to remember that federal employees who are deemed “essential” during a shutdown are working without pay. If you need help, like customer service at Medicare, or you’re planning a visit to a national park or you need to renew your passport, those are things that could be impacted.

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Q: Will there be any disruption to Social Security payments?

In the past, there have been no impacts on Social Security.

There may be delays around some things, like getting a new Social Security card, but Social Security dollars are mandatory. Those are not appropriated by Congress, and so those don’t get affected by this at all, one way or the other.

Payments continue to go out regardless of whether Congress appropriates money or not.

Read more about how Social Security is impacted by the shutdown.

What about Medicare? Should folks anticipate issues?

There really shouldn’t be any immediate impact. It could be that call centers are a little bit harder to get through to. It also depends on how long a shutdown lasts.

But based on past precedent, I wouldn’t anticipate any significant impacts.

Read more about how Medicare is affected by the shutdown.

Bill Sweeney, AARP’s senior vice president of government affairs.

AARP Studios

While we’re talking about health care, what’s happening with Medicare telehealth? That expired on Sept. 30 too.

There was a law that was passed a few years ago that gave Medicare the ability to pay for telehealth in a way that it hadn’t been able to do before.

So it’s possible that people will have some trouble receiving telehealth services through Medicare. Officially, Medicare is saying that most telehealth is no longer covered. But they’re also encouraging providers to keep performing services and to wait to file the claim until the shutdown is resolved. So it’s best to check with your own health care provider for how they’re handling it.

And what about SNAP? Will people still receive their benefits?

SNAP, like some other programs, is mandatory. Money is not appropriated by Congress every year. It passes as part of the Farm Bill every five years, and so it’s on a different timeline. So SNAP should continue to go out.

There could be, like the other programs, some impacts around new enrollment or [administrative operations], but a lot of that is handled by states. Those services that happen at a state level aren’t impacted by a federal shutdown.

Read more about how food assistance is affected by the shutdown.

What’s the best way for people to find out what federal services are still operating?

The best way is probably to visit the website of the government agency you need help from. AARP is working hard to keep up with each agency’s shutdown plans, but those can change from moment to moment. If you’re planning a visit to a national park, for example, you might want to check out that park’s website or the National Park Service website to find out the status. That’s probably good advice anytime, but especially in times as uncertain as this.

What must happen to get the government open and get federal services back on track?

Congress needs to pass a bill to fund the government. Every year, this is supposed to get done by September 30, before the government’s fiscal year begins on October 1. In the last few decades, it has become rarer and rarer for Congress to get this done on time, setting up these shutdown moments. Since these bills require 60 votes to pass in the Senate, it means Democrats and Republicans in Washington need to work together.

Finally, how has AARP worked to ensure that services for older adults remain a priority for lawmakers crafting federal budgets?

We always work to make sure Congress understands how important all of these programs are.

AARP is working every day to make sure that people do get the services and the protections that they pay for and that they deserve, and we’ll keep doing that.

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Molly Snow is a writer for AARP covering advocacy issues and state news. She also writes AARP's Today's Tips podcast. She previously worked at other news outlets, including Federal Times, McClatchy and Gannett.

Miriam Cross is a writer for AARP covering advocacy issues. She previously worked at American Banker and Kiplinger’s Personal Finance.

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