The Increase of Social Welfare in the United States Essays

The Social Security Act of 1935, signed by Franklin D. Roosevelt, created a program that included social insurance programs, as well as public assistance. Both programs came about due to the depression and were created as part of the New Deal to benefit the citizens who needed assistance. While both programs were created to assist the public, each program had different eligibility requirements and accomplished different tasks.

If eligible, families receive services such as x-rays, doctor visits, diagnostic testing, and etc, for free or may be required to pay a reduced amount of the bill. The welfare system has changed over the year from a long-term to short-term assistance in order to encourage independency. Not only does the tax funded welfare programs provide a means of distributing the wealth across the country, but also control poverty in America and improve the standard of living for low-income families.

Under the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA), Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) replaced AFDC, ending some Federal responsibility to welfare assistance. States operate their own programs; determine eligibility services to be provided to needy families, within Federal guidelines. The Federal government cannot regulate the conduct of states except to a few requirements, and states have a wide latitude in administering the program to "provide assistance to needy families so that children can be cared for in their own homes; to reduce dependency by promoting job preparation, work and marriage; to prevent out-of-wedlock pregnancies; and to encourage the formation and

The social welfare system in the United States can be a controversial topic especially now with the new presidential elect. For this paper I was assigned to look into two different peoples perceptions and attitudes on the social welfare system. I looked into how they perceived the system and whom they believed benefits from this system. Throughout this paper the identities of the two people I interviewed will not be revealed. I will simply refer to them in pronouns. My goal during this interview was not to educate my two interviewees so some of the information contained in this paper may not be accurate. Throughout this paper the two interviewees opinions will be stated and their opinions will then be compared and discussed. Although the whole population of the United States is experiencing the same welfare system each individual perceives and has different beliefs about the system.

Throughout the world many people live in poverty. There may see to be more laws that are put into place to help those in need. However, it is hard to provide support to those who refuse to take advantage of it. There is currently over five-hundred thousand homeless people in America. A lot of what was talked about in the Glass Castle and in our text book, showed a connection of how social work could have been applied.

unfamiliar citizens through residency requirements; and (4) assistance was for only the most destitute of people and only for an amount of time sufficient for the individual to improve their own circumstances. (The Elizabethan Poor Laws, n.d.)) These values are demonstrated by the operation and condition of orphanages and poor houses. These institutions were deliberately deplorable in order to discourage dependency on the services offered.

Child welfare, foster care, and adoption were authorized under the titles IV-B and the IV-E of the Social Security Act (SSA). The US Department of federal and Human Services with ginger included the child welfare services, while prompting safe and stable families programs (Children's Bureaus). Other programs were created such as foster care programs which the Chafee Foster Care Independence Program goes hand in hand with children's foster care, and even the adoption assistance program (Children's Bureaus). With these programs created many expansions on the child welfare policy. Foster care programs such as the Chafee Foster Care Independence Program (CFCIP) to which was implemented for youth who entered the kinship guardianship and or are adopted from foster care after the determined age of 16 (Children's Bureaus), with this program it helped both adults caring for older youth foster children and also for those foster care individuals who have “aged out” of foster care. This

"Welfare is the statutory procedure or social effort designed to promote the basic physical and material well-being of people in need," according to the dictionary (dictonary.com). Welfare comes in many forms, such as, Medicaid, HUD Homes, Food Stamps, and Supplement Security Income. Some people use one source of Welfare, while others use all.

Name one concept from the English Poor Laws and early responses to poverty that seem similar to concepts in contemporary social service programs? Explain how it is similar. (150 words)

In 1935, President Roosevelt signed into law the Social Security Act, sending the United States onto the historically unprecedented path of the welfare of the welfare state. In the wake of his footsteps, aggressive expansion has grown welfare programs to include everything from Medicare to food stamps. Many would say that the US government is not only obligated morally to provide welfare but also that it provides extensive societal economic windfalls. However, critics of welfare argue that the flaws of the US welfare system and its runaway nature outweigh the potential benefits.

act of 1935, titled Aid to Dependent Children (later changed to Aid to Families with Dependent

For centuries, nations, cities, and individual families have dealt with the problem of poverty; how to remedy current situations and how to prevent future ones. For most of history, there have been no government controlled poverty assistance programs. The poor simply relied on the goodness of their families or, if they did not have a family, on the generosity of the public at large. In the United States, this situation changed in 1935 with the passage of the Social Security Act. The Social Security Act has seen many successes, but it also faces many critiques of its structure and function. In the past, most governments did little to actively aid their poor population. This duty was

Welfare has been a safety net for many Americans, when the alternative for them is going without food and shelter. Over the years, the government has provided income for the unemployed, food assistance for the hungry, and health care for the poor. The federal government in the nineteenth century started to provide minimal benefits for the poor. During the twentieth century the United States federal government established a more substantial welfare system to help Americans when they most needed it. In 1996, welfare reform occurred under President Bill Clinton and it significantly changed the structure of welfare. Social Security has gone through significant change from FDR’s signing of the program into law to President George W. Bush’s

Many different programs were created, all of which were designed to provide Americans jobs, give temporary aid to the needy, and in a broad sense just get America out of the Great Depression. Welfare was implemented to provide temporary aid to the needy so that they could use such capital to get back on his/her feet and continue with a productive life (“Fix Welfare”).

The history of social welfare begins during colonization. Although there was not social work, there was some form of public assistance. Public assistance during colonization consisted of Early American Poor Laws. During this time the poor were referred to as “paupers” because they were unemployed and were required to wear P’s so they could be identified. The belief during this time was that it was the relative’s