Washington: The US national debt has exceeded $37 trillion for the first time in the country’s history. Data released by the US Treasury Department yesterday “Tuesday” showed gross national debt reaching $37.005 trillion.

According to Oman News Agency, the Congressional Budget Office has indicated that federal debt could climb to $54 trillion within a decade. This surge is driven by rising healthcare costs, an aging population, and the impact of elevated interest rates, which are increasing debt service burdens. Credit rating agencies have expressed concern over the deteriorating fiscal outlook. In mid-2023, Fitch Ratings downgraded the US’s long-term credit rating from AAA to AA+, citing worsening financial conditions and persistent political gridlock. Moody’s followed suit in May 2025, cutting its rating from Aaa to Aa1 and projecting that interest payments could rise from 9% of federal revenues today to 30% by 2035.

Federal debt has seen a significant increase in recent years, largely due to massive pandemic relief and stimulus measures under successive administrations. The Biden administration added about $4.8 trillion by September 2022, which included $1.85 trillion for the American Rescue Plan and $370 billion for infrastructure projects. Under the former Trump administration, the debt grew by $7.5 trillion during his first term, with the COVID-19 crisis pushing the fiscal 2020 deficit to a record $3.1 trillion, followed by more than $2.7 trillion in 2021.

The scale of the increase is notable: four decades ago, US federal debt totaled $907 billion. Today, interest payments in the current fiscal year-which began in October-have already outstripped combined spending on Medicare and the defense budget.