What would happen to the implementation of Obamacare if Republicans don’t pass a continuing resolution to fund the
government and there is a government shutdown as of October 1?
The answer is probably not much. Implementation of Obamacare would continue
pretty much on schedule. Here is
why. Obamacare is an “entitlement”
program like Social Security and Medicare funded by a formula, rather than by
specific government appropriations. In
other words, if you meet the requirements of the entitlement, say you qualify
for Social Security, then you receive the entitlement regardless of what
Congress does about government appropriations.
Of course, there is the issue of payments to federal employess who run
Obamacare. As for the operation of the
Exchanges, the Congressional Research Service says they are being funded by long
term appropriations that would not be affected by a government shutdown. Additionally, federal employees working on
Obamacare would probably be considered essential workers and their salaries
would not be affected by a government shutdown.
They would go to work as usual.
That’s what happened with Social Security workers during the 1995
shutdown. Most Social Security workers
(over 60,000) were furloughed but nearly 5,000 remained at work because they
were considered essential to continue Social Security operations, such as
process Social Security checks. 
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