How a Government Shutdown Could Affect You

Find out how it could impact your Social Security, Medicare, travel and more

Kenneth Terrell and Susan Milligan,

Updated September 22, 2025

AARP

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En español

Published September 25, 2023

/ Updated September 22, 2025

interior of the capitol rotunda inside the dome looking up next to a large statue

The Rotunda at the U.S. Capitol.

AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite

The government will partially shut down Oct. 1 unless Congress can reach a deal to continue funding federal operations by midnight Sept. 30, the end of the 2025 fiscal year. Most federal agencies, many of them in the midst of adapting to layoffs and other cuts to resources implemented earlier this year, would have to temporarily curtail operations.

During a shutdown, certain government activities deemed “essential” continue even without a federal funding deal. Tens of millions of Americans would continue to receive their Social Security, Medicare and veterans’ benefits, for example. People would also still be able to get their letters and prescription drugs delivered through the U.S. mail, among other essential services.

But many government functions and services would come to a halt, with significant impacts on older Americans. Many federal workers will face furloughs, and those whose jobs are deemed essential would have to work without pay, pending reimbursement when a funding package is ultimately approved.

The last time large portions of the federal government shut down was from Dec. 22, 2018, to Jan. 25, 2019. That 35-day shutdown was the longest in history.

Since then, Congress has repeatedly missed deadlines to adopt a budget but averted shutdowns by passing temporary spending bills called continuing resolutions. These stopgap measures keep the government functioning, typically at the previous year’s funding levels, while lawmakers negotiate the details of a new budget.

If a shutdown happens this October, here’s a look at how it could affect these vital services.

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Social Security

Social Security benefits would be paid as usual. They are considered mandatory spending, not subject to the annual congressional appropriations process, and have a dedicated funding source — the payroll taxes most U.S. workers pay on their earnings.

However, Congress does determine how much the Social Security Administration can spend on operations, and customer service can be affected by a shutdown. According to the SSA’s shutdown contingency plan, most routine services would continue, including processing applications for benefits, hearing cases on appeal, and issuing new and replacement Social Security cards. Field offices and phone lines would remain open.

A few customer services that are not considered essential would be suspended, according to the plan, including benefit verifications.

Medicare

Like Social Security payments, Medicare benefits are mandatory spending and would largely continue as normal. Enrollees could still go to the doctor or hospital and get their drug prescriptions filled. Depending on how long a shutdown lasts, medical providers could see a lag in their payments.

If you want to enroll in Medicare during a shutdown, you can still go to ssa.gov and fill out an application. The Medicare hotline (800-633-4227) would continue to operate.

One service that wouldn’t be available during a shutdown is getting a replacement Medicare card. Those are generated by the Social Security Administration, which says it won’t issue replacement Medicare cards during a shutdown.

Mail delivery

Letters and packages would be delivered as usual, and post office branches would remain open. The U.S. Postal Service is an independent agency, and because it does not depend on the federal budget for its funding, it wouldn’t be affected by a shutdown.

Veterans

Most government services for military veterans and their families would continue during a shutdown, including within the Veterans Health Administration. VA hospitals would remain open and fully staffed. The Tricare health insurance program would continue to operate as usual. Veterans would still get their pension benefits, and claims would continue to be processed.

Transportation

Air travel: Commercial flights would continue as usual. Air traffic controllers and airport security screeners are considered essential workers, so they would remain on the job.

However, if you’re traveling by plane, you may want to get to the airport a little earlier than usual. During the partial government shutdown of 2018–2019, security lines at some airports were longer than usual because many TSA screeners — who, like other essential federal workers, were required to work without being paid — called in sick.

Train travel: Amtrak trains would continue running as usual. Although federally owned, Amtrak is chartered as a private corporation and not subject to a government shutdown. During the 2018–2019 shutdown, Amtrak service was not affected.

Passports: The U.S. State Department would continue to issue and renew passports and visas. Routine passport applications can be completed at most post offices, which would remain open during a government shutdown. However, some passport offices located in federal buildings may be closed, so it would be a good idea to check before going to one.

Food safety

Meat, poultry, eggs and various species of catfish that are processed at nearly 7,100 commercial facilities in the U.S. would continue to be inspected by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service. It’s not clear how other food-processing facilities — such as cereal makers, ice cream plants and cheese factories — would be affected. During the 2018–2019 shutdown, routine Food and Drug Administration (FDA) inspections were initially stopped. Some were later restored.

Drug safety

The FDA would continue to approve medications, inspect drug-manufacturing facilities and regulate tobacco products, as these functions are paid for by user fees. It would also continue to address imminent threats to human health or life, including outbreaks of foodborne illness and infectious diseases, product recalls and drug shortages.

Nutrition

The Department of Agriculture, which runs federal food assistance programs for lower-income families, has indicated in the past that these benefits “will continue to the extent that funds … are available to support those programs.” This includes the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

In previous shutdowns, that has meant that benefits go out as usual during the first month, but if the government remains unfunded after 30 days, recipients could see benefit delays.

National parks and monuments

Amid a congressional budget battle in 2023, National Park Service officials said all sites under their operation would be closed if a shutdown took place.

During the 2018–2019 shutdown, most of the parks remained open but with very limited services and staffing. While people were able to visit many of the parks and landmarks during that shutdown, park employees were furloughed and visitors faced mounting trash and uncleaned restrooms.

The Smithsonian Institution

The Smithsonian operates 21 museums, most of them in Washington, D.C., and the National Zoo, also in Washington. It gets about 62 percent of its funding from the federal government and the rest from private sources.

If a shutdown happens, the Smithsonian can keep museums open using what’s left of its funding from the previous fiscal year but will close sites when that money is exhausted, keeping only enough staff on duty for security, maintenance and other necessary operations, according to the organization’s September 2023 contingency plan.

The Smithsonian adopted a similar strategy in 2019, with prior-year funds used to keep facilities open for 11 days after the shutdown began.

Randy Lilleston, Andy Markowitz and Peter Urban contributed to this article.