Congress is still debating who should qualify for a benefits extension as thousands of jobless Americans lose their weekly unemployment checks every day. The House last month approved lengthening benefits by 13 weeks for those in high-unemployment states. The proposal has stalled as Democrat leaders argue over the terms in the Senate reports CNNMoney.com.
Meanwhile, 400,000 people ran out of benefits in September and another 208,000 are set to lose them this month, according to the National Employment Law Project. Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., is pushing legislation that would increase benefits nationwide by four weeks. Those in states with unemployment rates greater than 8.5% would receive a total of 17 additional weeks.
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