Wolf At the Door, No Money In the Cupboard

Millions Of Americans Have No Emergency Savings. Some Policy Tweaks Could Change That.

The 16-day government shutdown has come and gone. But amid the countdown clocks, panda cam panic, and happy hour deals for furloughed workers, there’s one crucial thing the media missed: the quiet unfolding of 8,200 private financial disasters. That was the number of federal employees who took hardship withdrawals from their retirement accounts to cover their expenses while their paychecks were withheld. And those federal withdrawals are a canary in the coal mine: More than one-quarter of Americans with 401(k)-style plans have dipped into their accounts early, according to a …