Maryland Rep. Sarah Elfreth said the ongoing government shutdown is “shameful” and has left tens of thousands of her constituents without pay, while warning that health care costs are set to rise sharply if Congress fails to act.

In an interview with WBAL Radio’s T.J. Smith, Elfreth, a freshman Democrat representing Maryland’s 3rd Congressional District, said she has been frustrated by what she described as a lack of urgency in Washington.

“This government shutdown needs to end, first and foremost,” Elfreth said. “We’re 28 days in, and it’s the longest full shutdown in U.S. history. I represent 44,000 federal employees and two to three times that in contractors. They’re going without a paycheck, and it’s shameful.”

Despite, Elfreth’s comments, the current shutdown is actually the second

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