The government shutdown has been extended into a new week as most Democrats and Republicans in Congress remain at loggerheads, leaving federal workers, the military and other Americans worried about critical paychecks.
The Senate funding bill failed for the 10th time on Thursday, but senators will vote again on Monday. Democrats have been pushing to include an extension of health care subsidies in any spending legislation, warning of large increases in health insurance premiums. The stalemate brings the closure closer to three weeks.
The longest government shutdown was 35 days in 2018 and 2019 during President Donald Trump’s first term. Many federal employees are laid off or working without pay, although Trump has used workarounds to pay military service members and other workers.
Vice President JD Vance told troops gathered at Camp Pendleton, California, on Saturday for an event celebrating the 250th anniversary of the Marine Corps that he told Trump “we have to figure out how to pay these Marines.”
At the same time, the Trump administration has instituted thousands of layoffs at some federal agencies during the shutdown and is targeting federal funding in blue states and cities.
On October 17, the Trump White House announced that the Army Corps of Engineers will “immediately pause” $11 billion worth of infrastructure projects in several Democratic-led cities.
Some VA services affected
Some of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ services have been affected by the shutdown, as thousands of its employees have been laid off.
VA benefits, such as compensation, pension, education, and housing, operate as usual. Medical centers and clinics remain open. Support services for suicide prevention, homelessness and caregivers also remain available.
However, during the shutdown, VA regional benefits offices are closed, transition program assistance has ceased, and VA cemetery grounds are not maintained. Outreach efforts through social media and emails have also stopped.
In an Oct. 7 letter to VA Secretary Doug Collins, members of the House and Senate Veterans Affairs Committees criticized the VA’s response to the shutdown. Lawmakers said the agency has been misleading by claiming it cannot respond to communications from members of Congress during the shutdown.
Meanwhile, in an op-ed for The Hill published on October 10, Collins called the actions of congressional Democrats “one of the greatest displays of hypocrisy in recent history.”
Are national parks open?
Although operations of “non-essential” government agencies, including the National Park Service, have been suspended indefinitely, access to recreational areas has not yet been affected by the federal government shutdown.
All 63 national parks across the country are technically open for public use and have been since the lockdown began on October 1.
However, use of some amenities may be limited or unavailable to the public, such as the South Rim Visitor Center at the Grand Canyon, until a funding package is approved.
– Amaris Encinas and Sudiksha Kochi
Will I still receive my Social Security check?
Yes, Social Security payments, including supplemental security income and retirement, disability, and survivor benefits, continue during a government shutdown.
Because Social Security benefit programs are considered mandatory expenditures by law, they are not affected by lack of funding allocations. Payments are still distributed on a regular schedule during the closure.
Social Security offices remain open during the closure, but only some services are available.
– Sudiksha Kochi and Melina Khan
A rainbow is visible in the clouds behind the Capitol building, weeks after the continued US government shutdown on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, US, October 18, 2025.
Do the military get paid during a shutdown?
About 46,000 full-time U.S. military personnel are without pay during the federal government shutdown, despite Trump’s push to pay active-duty troops.
The affected service members, known as dual-status technicians, are full-time employees of the National Guard and other military reserve units who, under federal law, must wear their military uniform to work daily, must maintain part-time military membership and must comply with military standards.
Dual-status technicians, considered “rare birds” by the Supreme Court, often work shoulder-to-shoulder with active-duty members of their units, receiving different salaries and different benefits for similar tasks and risks. Their active peers received a full paycheck on Oct. 15 after Trump directed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to transfer about $6.5 billion in funds to cover payroll.
– Davis Winkie and Sudiksha Kochi
When is the next Senate vote?
A sign posted by the National Park Service at the entrance to the Washington Monument alerts visitors that some services may not be available, weeks after the continued US government shutdown, in Washington, DC, US, on October 17, 2025.
The Senate is scheduled to reconvene Monday afternoon at 3 pm Eastern Time. After that, the Senate will vote on a measure to end the shutdown around 5:30 p.m. ET.
If passed, the government shutdown would end once Trump signs the funding bill into law. But if the vote fails, the shutdown will continue as it has for the past two and a half weeks.
– Sudiksha Kochi and Fernando Cervantes Jr.
Contributing: Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Government shutdown reaches day 19 with no end in sight