The national debt surpassed $30 trillion for the first time Tuesday, fueled in part by the coronavirus pandemic and what economists describe as years of unsustainable government spending that could have long-term consequences for every American. The federal government now owes $23.5 trillion in debt to creditors and another $6.5 trillion to itself. Debt to creditors soared by $1.5 trillion over the last year alone, according to the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, a nonpartisan organization focused on addressing the country’s fiscal challenges. The mounting debt can impact the health and economic security of Americans in numerous ways – hitting their pocketbooks through higher interest rates, for example, or syphoning off government funding needed for other programs. A $30 trillion debt amounts to about $90,000 per American. Net interest costs on the debt average $1 billion per day or roughly $2,600 per household this year. And it’s going to get worse. Over the next three decades, net interest payments on the debt are projected to hit new records – totaling more than $60 trillion and, by 2051, taking up nearly half of all federal revenues and measuring nearly 9% of the gross domestic product, economists warn. For comparison, interest on the debt has never exceeded 19% of federal revenues or much more than 3% of the GDP.