Public Assistance For Welfare Programs

In 2010, 17.5% of unemployed adults collecting some sort of welfare failed drug tests. In 2011, 23.8% of welfare recipients admitted to using illegal drugs, including marijuana. The problem the United States if facing is that welfare recipients are using the cash they are given to purchase illegal drugs. Many of these people purchasing illegal drugs had prior illegal drug abuse problems and some of these people believe that since they are given this “free” money, they can continue on with these addictions instead of finding the help they need to get back onto their own two feet. Many employers ask all of their job applicants for a drug test to even be considered for the job, so why shouldn’t the government ask the same for people looking

When dealing with this we come to many road blocks. We should know and understand the difference in a drug use problem and a psychiatric disorder. Also understanding the difference in substance abuse and substance dependence. Confusing the two could be an issue. When you decide to drug test the welfare there is much more that needs to go into it than just the test to determine if you should receive benefits from the state or not. Think about the rights we have as Americans have. Drug testing the welfare can bring legal problems, such as due process. There have been states who have tried this in the past but of

Drug Testing Welfare Recipients To test or not to test has been has been the question at hand for many states that are dealing with whether or not to pass the law that welfare recipients should or should not be drug tested in order to receive assistance from the government. Florida was the first state to mandate the law in 2011 and thereafter twenty four other states in the last year have also passed this law in our own state of Oklahoma being one of them. Although alcohol is legal it is abused far more than marijuana or hard core drugs, According to the 1996 study by the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism the differences between the proportion of welfare and non-welfare recipients using illegal drugs are statistically insignificant. Although some states have decided to pass the law for welfare recipients in order receive government assistance, I believe it’s ineffective to drug test these welfare recipients in order to receive their benefits. Welfare in the United States commonly refers to the federal government welfare programs that have been put in place to assist the unemployed or underemployed. Help is extended to the poor through a variety of government welfare programs that include the Women, Infants, and Children Program, which is referred to as WIC, Medicaid, and Temporary Assistance to Needy Families commonly known as TANF and Aid to Families with Dependent Children. Drug testing welfare recipients is negative because drug tests performed on welfare

People work and get paid and have to submit to drug test isn't public assistance a form of getting paid. Welfare recipients should be held to the same standard as everybody else in this regard. Another pro for this side of the argument is that by performing these tests and removing drug users from the welfare system, there is the potential of saving the state millions of dollars every year. By spending a small amount of money to test an applicant the state could save the money that would have been given to a drug user and give it to someone truly deserving. Some people would say that if someone that is a recipient of these assistance programs are using drugs would it not stand to reason that if they can afford to buy drugs that they could afford to live on their own and not take advantage of these government assistance

The welfare system is designed to support those that are in need. The welfare system should not be abused or misused and failure to comply will be grounds for termination. Drug testing welfare recipients, is it an infringement of rights and should it be mandatory for everyone that receiving or will receive assistance? This subject is up for debate as to whether or not it violates welfare recipient’s constitutional rights. If it should be implemented, would it help saving tax dollars and government spending and stop welfare

The main argument for those who want this drug testing to take place is that it would save taxpayers money (Miran, 2015). They feel that by drug testing applicants and/or receivers of welfare, they will weed out those who are drug abusers. That being said, their money wouldn’t be ‘wasted’ on those who ‘don’t deserve it’. They also somehow feel that if this policy were put into place, people wouldn’t abuse drugs. They

While it is true that there are some jobs that do require a drug test prior to employment, the employees have a choice in the matter. If they do not wish to take a drug test, or if they fail the test, they can choose to find another job. However, by making it mandatory that welfare recipients be drug tested, they do not have a choice. If welfare recipients fail a drug test or refuse to take it, they don’t have the option to find another government to get the assistance that they need. Most welfare recipients are in need of public assistance due to situations that they cannot control. For example, if a single mother of three kids gets laid off due to the harsh economy, at some point, she has no other choice but to ask for help. Eventually, she may have to utilize public assistance that the government has put in place such as food stamps, Medicaid, or welfare. If the government makes drug testing mandatory, the single mother of three has only one choice to make—do whatever the government requires to feed

Drug abuse is a huge epidemic in America, and we need to come for all angles to try and stop it. One of which can be from the welfare side. Drug testing is thought to decrease drug abuse with people on welfare. If people know that they have to pass a drug test to be able to get money for their necessities, it may encourage them to never use in the first place. It also might help them realize they have a problem and help give them a reason to get clean. This is important because an addict needs something to drive them to want to get clean, and knowing they will not receive government assistance if using can be a huge reason to be clean. Also drug testing will make the state aware and available to help the welfare recipients. The Mayor of New York Rudolph W. Giuliani says, “ Welfare recipients who test positive for drugs would be required to enroll in a drug treatment program or join a waiting list for treatment to keep getting benefits.” In Rhode Island a law bans recipients who fail a drug test from getting welfare for a year, unless they complete a substance abuse treatment successfully. Once they do complete treatment they can reapply after six months. Both of these states are giving people that fail a second chance, and maybe their only chance.

As Lombardo says, “Many people need to be drug tested in order to have gainful employment and a regular paycheck. If it is a normal part of life for the vast majority of a country’s population, then the system of testing is already in place to add welfare recipients into the regular testing cycle.” Every year local, state, and national government programs offer low-income households the opportunity to make impoverished peoples needs to be met. These welfare systems have a 3% abuse rate where recipients use their benefits for alcohol and illicit drugs. To maintain compliance with program regulations, drug testing would have to be in the

People collecting welfare should undergo drug testing to get the money the government is giving them, because it makes welfare applicants go down at least 48 percent, it also will help the national debt go down and help people with their drug problems. There are many benefits of drug testing welfare recipients.

With 35.4% of Americans on welfare, and the U.S spending over 131 billion on welfare annually, not including food stamps. People have been looking for a way to cut the costs of welfare for many years. And then Welfare drug testing was proposed. At initial thought it seemed like a grand idea and a great way to cut costs and to eliminate all the drug users in the system, and because of that welfare drug testing has been put into action in 13 states. But, welfare drug testing is completely ineffective. Welfare drug testing should not be allowed because it violates the rights of the welfare recipients, it is stereotyping and discriminating against people on welfare, and it is expensive and ineffective . For all these reasons mandatory

Why do people that are working have to pass a drug test while those on welfare do not? This is the question that is causing a lot of debate across the country and throughout congress. Many working class Americans are outraged at the current welfare policies and believe something needs to change. There are always going to be people on government assistance who are abusing the system and who are using drugs while not working. Something needs to change so we can actually help families who need assistance, not those who are abusing drugs and the system. Therefor, I believe that states should require drug testing of all individuals on welfare since those who are supporting them have to pass a drug test.

With a new president, and many policies and procedures changing in the government systems, it has recently been brought to many people’s attention how certain recipients in government assistance programs do not use the money correctly. As a result of that many now believe that everyone on government assistance should be drug tested. The welfare system can provide cash, food, housing, medical care, and targeted social services to poor and low income Americans (Duffy). Drug testing the recipients would ensure that no one was receiving aid that was using any type of illegal substance. This is a very controversial issue in today’s society and has both sides fighting hard for what they believe in.

Since the early War on Drugs and the welfare reform of the 1990s, those who receive public benefits have been under the microscope of drug warriors and policy makers. Those who are proponents of drug testing say that substance abuse and addiction can interfere with the ability to obtain or maintain jobs. Drug testing can help welfare recipients prepare for the job market by getting them clean and ready for the job application process (Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE), 2011). Drug use and abuse can also contribute to child abuse and neglect (Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP), 2013). Testing welfare recipients can also be cost effective, as it would prevent the misuse of public funds for the purchase

People receiving government assistance should be required to submit a drug test for benefits, because it would save taxpayers’ money. There are currently seven states in America that drug screen their assistance receiving citizens. Many people want to argue that the findings are disheartening based on a few to a couple hundred people testing positive. The thing that people do not understand however, is that per every person who tests positive is a few hundred to a thousand dollars not being wasted the next month. Think about it, say citizens in Iowa receive $500 in benefits. Out of all of the welfare recipients, 100 test positive for