A partisan standoff over heath care and spending is threatening to trigger the first U.S. government shutdown in almost seven years.

Democrats and Republicans have been unable to resolve an impasse over federal healthcare spending. The government will shutdown at the end of the day on Tuesday barring a last-minute breakthrough.

A government shutdown typically risks only modest damage for the U.S. economy, stemming mainly from furloughed public workers, who temporarily lose out on pay and put a dent in U.S. consumer spending, analysts told ABC News.

The White House last week told federal agencies to begin preparing for mass firings if Congress does not pass a deal to avert a government shutdown.

A memo from the White House budget office telling federal agencies to prepare plans for mass firings should the government shut down signaled a dramatic escalation in a funding staredown with fewer potential off-ramps as next week’s deadline nears.