Government Shutdown: What Does This Mean To You
As you know the US Federal government is shut down due to Congress forcing an unnecessary budget crisis on our country as they tried to dismantle the Affordable Care Act also known as ObamaCare. President Obama has gone on record saying that the shutdown is intended to hinder the ability of our government to provide 15% of US citizens with health insurance that don’t currently have coverage, adding “strange that one party would make keeping people uninsured the centerpiece of their agenda.”
Well while the government shutdown occurred in Washington DC, the effects can be felt throughout the country. In less than a week national parks have been closed, federally funded scientific research has been interrupted, the National Guard has been furloughed, and over 800,000 Americans are not able to go to work or receive pay until this is settled.
Here is a list of some government facilities and agencies that are being affected:
Ability One: An agency that works on behalf of our country’s blind citizens
National Institutes of Health (NIH) Clinical Center: America’s research hospital that focuses its daily efforts on clinical research and the discovery of better medical treatments, therapies, and interventions to improve the nation’s health.
Center for Disease Control and Prevention: Our nation’s health protection agency that protects Americans from health, safety, and security threats, both nationally and internationally.
WIC Food Program: A program that provides low-income pregnant women, new mothers, and children up to the age of 5 with healthy food.
NASA: Our nation’s space program.
Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD): An agency that creates strong, sustainable, inclusive communities free from discrimination and quality affordable homes for all.
US Department of Justice: Our national agency that enforced the law while defending the interests of the US according to the law. This includes ensuring public safety against national and international threats, crime prevention and control, and seeking punishment for unlawful behavior.
Environmental Protection Agency: The agency that protects human health and the environment.
Department of Labor: They promote and develop the welfare of the wage earners, job seekers, and retirees of the United States, by improving working conditions, advancing opportunities for profitable employment, and ensuring work-related benefits and rights.
Federal Trade Commission: The nation’s consumer protection agency that is responsible for keeping competition amongst businesses strong by making sure that companies compete fairly and don’t mislead or trick people about their products and services.
Internal Revenue Service: The agency that collects tax revenue for the Unites States federal government.
United States Department of Agriculture: The agency that ensures the safety of food in its journey from the seedling in the field to the food on your dinner table.
These are just a few of the federally funded programs, agencies, and organizations that are being affected by the government shut down. Hopefully this will end soon and our government will began working at full capacity again.
Jessica Williams is Consolidated Credit’s Marketing Communications New Media Coordinator. As a member of the education team, Jessica focuses on helping consumers make better financial decisions while living debt-free. She has previously worked with Take Stock In Children, where she was a mentor and communications specialist, and SouthPromo.com, where she managed community relations, event planning, marketing, and public relations. Jessica attended both the University of Florida and the University of Central Florida where she received her B.S. in Interpersonal/Organizational Communications and Marketing. Connect with Jessica on Google+.