The longest government shutdown in U.S history began on Oct 1. On Nov 13, the government reopened after 43 days of being closed. During the shutdown, federal workers did not receive paychecks, SNAP benefits were not available for families, and many people were having a difficult time just trying to get by. This article will cover why the government closed, who was affected by the shutdown and how it reopened.

At midnight on October 1, the shutdown officially started, because Congress failed to pass legislation for the 2026 fiscal year. The basis of the government shutdown was because Democrats and Republicans couldn’t agree on healthcare funding. Democrats wanted to extend a tax credit to the end of this year that would lower the cost of health care for Americans. They did not agree on the short term bill that was being proposed that didn’t include making healthcare a priority.

During the shutdown, federal workers weren’t getting paid for their work. Around 1.4 million federal workers were affected by the shutdown. Half of them (670,000) were sent home without pay and the other half (730,000) were working without getting paid. With the government being closed for 43 days, some federal workers were missing 3 full paychecks.

Many people affected during the shutdown were people who received SNAP benefits. There were others affected who received medicare and social security checks and many other government funded programs. For people who receive social security checks, while they could still be accessed, they were most likely delayed with process claims.

The circumstances were the same for people who receive medicare. The people who receive SNAP benefits were really affected. On Oct 10, the Trump Administration directed states not to send out SNAP benefits. They also chose not to release emergency funding for the program.

After 43 days of the government being shut down, there was a signing ceremony to reopen the government. With a vote of 222-209, the House passed the bill for the government to be reopened. On Wednesday, Donald Trump signed the bill into law that ended the shutdown. Now that the government is open, Democrats and Republicans will start to negotiate over health care funding once again.