Americans will lose an hour of evening daylight on Sunday, November 1, when clocks fall back at 2 a.m. local time — a twice-yearly ritual that health experts say disrupts the body's natural rhythms and increases risks of heart attacks and car crashes.
The shift marks the return to standard time and gives Americans an extra hour of sleep, while also bringing earlier sunsets and more morning daylight through the winter months. Daylight saving time begins on the second Sunday in March and ends on the first Sunday in November.
Public Health Concerns Mount
Erik Herzog, a biology and neuroscience professor at Washington University in St. Louis and former president of the Society for Research on Biological Rhythms, previously told USA TODAY that permanent standard time would be the healthiest option. Herzog said clock changes disrupt circadian rhythms, the body's internal clock that regulates sleep and other biological functions. The spring time change, when clocks move forward an hour, is especially tough on the body and has been linked to increases in heart attacks and car crashes.
Many sleep and health experts argue that changing clocks twice a year disrupts the body's natural rhythm. A 2023 YouGov survey found that 62% of Americans favored eliminating the twice-yearly clock changes. A January 2025 Gallup poll found that 54% wanted to end daylight saving time, with 48% preferring year-round standard time and 24% favoring permanent daylight saving time.
Legislative Stalemate Continues
Lawmakers from both parties have spent years pushing proposals to either make daylight saving time permanent or eliminate the twice-annual clock change altogether. While several bills have advanced, including the Sunshine Protection Act of 2022 passed by the U.S. Senate, none have made it across the finish line. The U.S. House of Representatives passed the bill in July to make daylight saving time permanent, but it faces an uphill battle in the Senate.
Trump is personally calling politicians urging them to support it. "Hopefully the Senate's going to approve that one," he said. But despite support from the president and some lawmakers, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-South Dakota, has questioned whether the measure has enough votes to pass the upper chamber.
Several states and U.S. territories do not observe daylight saving time and stay on standard time year-round: Hawaii, most of Arizona except the Navajo Nation, American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands.
What Happens Next
For now, Americans should plan on another clock change this fall. While Congress continues debating whether to make daylight saving time permanent or end seasonal clock changes altogether, no change has become law. That means most of the country will still set clocks back one hour on November 1, extending a tradition that many voters, health experts and even the president say they're ready to leave behind.
Why This Matters:
The twice-yearly clock change isn't just an inconvenience — it's a public health issue that disproportionately affects workers, families with young children, and anyone with existing health vulnerabilities. Medical research has documented increased heart attacks and traffic accidents following the spring time change, costs borne by individuals and strained healthcare systems. Despite overwhelming public support for ending the practice and clear scientific evidence of harm, political gridlock has prevented Congress from acting on legislation that passed the Senate four years ago. The continued inaction means millions of Americans will face disrupted sleep patterns, reduced productivity, and elevated health risks twice each year, while a handful of states and territories that've opted out demonstrate year-round standard time is entirely workable. This represents a failure of democratic institutions to respond to both expert consensus and voter preferences on a straightforward quality-of-life issue.