Shutdowns Don’t Stop the Need for Care
As of midnight, the federal government is officially shut down. For most people, that may sound like a fight in Washington. But for families in Maine, it lands right at home.
Care Can’t Be Paused
Shutdowns don’t pause the need for meals, medications, or daily support. They don’t pause the exhaustion of caregivers, or the waitlists for home care. And they certainly don’t pause health concerns that need attention now, not after a budget fight.
Care doesn’t wait for Congress — and families can’t hit pause while Washington plays games.
Yet that’s exactly what a shutdown does: it interrupts the flow of programs, reimbursements, and guidance that families rely on. It doesn’t stop the need — it just strips away the stability.
Telehealth and Medical Home Care
In a rural state like ours, telehealth has been a lifeline. It doesn’t replace the hands-on help of medical home care, but it complements it — allowing check-ins, monitoring, and timely interventions that make care at home possible.
With today’s shutdown, and the expiration of telehealth policies tied to October 1, that lifeline is in jeopardy. Providers face uncertainty about what services can be billed, what rules are still in place, and whether families can continue to count on remote care.
If leaders can’t guarantee continuity of care, then they’re not protecting families — they’re gambling with them.
When politics decide whether your next appointment happens, that isn’t stability. That’s fragility.
And home care and telehealth are just two examples. Every part of daily life — from food security to housing assistance to safe transportation — depends on stability families can trust. When Washington stalls, all of it is on the line.
Refusing to Legitimize This
We can’t legitimize a system that treats care as optional — that allows services to vanish every time Congress stalls. Families deserve continuity, not political games.
To me, the most important thing isn’t about being right in some debate. It’s about making sure we keep going. Because families can’t afford to lose momentum when it comes to care at home — or in any part of daily life.
