Colorado Single Mom In Tough Spot With Federal Shutdown
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (CBS4) - A Colorado mom has been hit hard by this week's federal government shutdown.
Alex Nguyen is a disabled veteran and mother of three who has been furloughed from her government job. Although she and thousands of other federal workers in Colorado like her have been told to hang tight as a swift resolution to the shutdown is sought, she says she is worried.
Nguyen works as an administrative assistant at the Evans Army Community Hospital in Fort Carson.
"Do you live paycheck to paycheck?" CBS4's Jodi Brooks asked Nguyen at her Colorado Springs home on Wednesday.
"I do, only because I have three kids and I'm a single mother," she said.
Nguyen served in the Army. She says she joined the military without any hesitation.
"I wanted to fight a war if I had to. I wanted to support the U.S.," she said.
After seven years of service she was medically discharged.
"Right now my disabilities are PTSD, bi-polar, I have psycho-genic seizures, and I'm epilepic," she said.
Nguyen, like thousands of veterans in Colorado, relies on veteran benefits that will only be funded through the end of October if the shutdown continues and Congress can't reach a deal.
"They're taking my benefits away from me," Nguyen said. "I barely have health insurance."
"So without your job, without you VA benefits, you're in trouble, right?" Brooks asked Nguyen.
"Yes," she replied.
Nguyen says everything she's done and everything she works for is for her children.
"I didn't do anything wrong," she said, referring to being on furlough.
Initially Nguyen was told she may be back to work before the end of this week. At the rate things are going, she doubts it.
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