This article was originally posted at Washington's Top News by U.S. News and World Report, and can be accessed here.

If you’re one of the 800,000 federal employees who are not getting paid during the government shutdown, you’re in a tough spot, for sure.

Most likely, you’ve morphed into survival mode, which may or may not include thinking about your credit score. I totally get that. But what if I told you it’s possible to get through this with an (almost) intact credit score?

The three bureaus added regulations on when medical bills can be reported on consumer credit reports.

This article was originally published on npr.org by Michelle Andrews.

Millions of Americans have medical debt that's hurting their credit. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau estimated it's as many as 43 million people, according to data released in late 2014.