Preview

Should the Welfare Be Drug Tested

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
522 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Should the Welfare Be Drug Tested
Final when I was a kid I was the type who was curious of everything and when I couldn't figure what it was or where it went I would have a puzzled look on my face. Since I've grown up there were a lot of things that I was curious about but there's not a things that I didn't figure out the awnsers to except for one, and that is on the subject of welfare, should you be drug tested or what are you spending your check from the government on. I could rant and rave for hours on all the subtopics of welfare, but the most important subtopic that I would like to focus on is "Should the Welfare Be Drug Tested". In my opinion I say "yes", here's why.

The term welfare is actually not just one program is a lot of programs under one word, which is welfare. Some of the programs are: Medicaid, The Women, Infants and Childrem (WIC). Even though welfare has Been around longer people will try to scam people. In fact the welfare has been around longer then our government. However Brittain deserves all credit cause they were the first ones to come up with a system similar to ours today. Later on in the 30's The Great Depression had hit. People were laid off and that had no luck in looking for a job. That's exactly when our President Franklin D. Roosevelt decided that if he created more jobs then it would lower unemployment rates.

Back where I grew up you don't just get money handed to you, you have to work for it. Now I think the majority of people who are on welfare could go and apply somewhere and get a job.

Requiring welfare recipients to stop using illegal drugs is a must because it's a real issue in today's society. Most recent studies indicate that one third of welfare use illegal drugs. Florida's policy of requiring drug testing for welfare applicants, appears to have reduced new enrollments by as much as 48 percent. Applicants who use illegal drugs simply chose not to enter the welfare system. Of course, they could sign up for welfare in the future, but

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    Ok, let's all look at this as realistically as we can; if just 1 person failed a drug test for the welfare, that's a whole extra few hundred dollars per month that our government can save, and that's only for 1 person! A typical drug test cost around $10 for the cheaper ones. That's store price too, that's not considering what government contracter bulk…

    • 501 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Florida Governor Rick Scott made plans to test all welfare recipients to see if they are using drugs before they can receive payments is hardly saving the state any money, according to recent reports. At $30 per test, the state paid $28,800 in drug test reimbursements (960 reimbursements at $30 each, since about 2 percent also didn’t finish the application process) for those who did pass, while saving themselves about $66,000 in payments that did not have to be made for the year to those applicants that didn’t make it through for one reason or another (applicants receive $138 a month, or $1,656 per year).…

    • 493 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Jonathon Walters author of “Should Welfare Recipients be Drug Tested?” published an article on March 13, 2012 for Governing: The State and Localities that provided readers with several points of interest when discussing drug testing welfare recipients. Walters states in his article “According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, almost two dozen states are considering bills that require drug testing those either applying for or receiving public benefits, a policy that has been cut down in the courts before because the Fourth Amendment grants that every individual "be secure in their persons, houses, papers and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures." (Should Welfare Recipients be Drug Tested? para 1.) This paragraph explains that states are having difficulty passing this bill because the government feels that it violates American’s 4th amendment.…

    • 566 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    There is much debate regarding this issue. Supporters of requiring drug tests for welfare applicants believe that there will be many people deterred from applying due to knowing they will not pass. They also believe that some will fail the drug tests. These supporters believe this number of people will be so large that there will be a significant decrease in welfare spending. Other supporters have said “substance abuse is a prominent barrier preventing people from making the necessary transition from governmental dependence to self-reliance.”(Targeted News Service) Opponents have said this is a direct violation of our constitutional rights as American citizens. Some have even said it is not right to assume that just because people are poor, they drug users. Other opposers of welfare drug testing have argued that it will not save money at…

    • 1822 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Does Welfare Feel Ashamed

    • 309 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Welfare was created in 1935 to provide for the families in need of food, clothing, and shelter, but today it has become a large, controversial topic. Some people argue that it is ridiculous that some people can’t take care of themselves and must rely on everyone else’s money to support them. Those people cause those on welfare to become ashamed of themselves. I believe people on welfare should not feel ashamed because some do hold a job if not multiple, but still cannot provide for themselves and others have certain disabilities that restrict them from getting a job and supporting themselves.…

    • 309 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    If mandatory drug testing were implemented, fewer checks would be used to purchase illegal drugs, and be used for necessary items instead. When a person is addicted to drugs, it consumes the individual’s life. The person becomes obsessed with the drug they are addicted to; it becomes more important to them, than, food, family and even their own well-being. This behavior puts them and everyone under their care at risk. If a welfare recipient has children and they use the money meant to feed their children for drugs; not only has our government paid for someone’s high, but the child will now go without food. On the flipside, if mandatory random drug testing was part of the process, we would be able to identify abusers and have their children placed where they can be cared for more effectively. This may help the next generation not to follow in their parent’s footsteps. In identifying this type of behavior, we may be able to save not only the children, but the abusers as well.…

    • 704 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Drug testing welfare recipients has been a major topic across the United States for a few years now. Many argue that if working class people are subject to a test prior to hire or randomly during the length of employment, why should those that don’t have to work for money not have the same treatment? Invasion of privacy is a huge disadvantage on the government’s part, yes it is free money but that doesn’t entitle anyone, even government, to control every aspect of your life or hold it constantly over a person’s head until they feel guilt or just flat decline assistance. Let’s ask ourselves just one question; if you went to the bank for a car loan, being this is a necessity for everyday living to own, how would you feel if they asked you to take a drug test prior to lending you the money? I feel many peoples’ tune would change drastically.…

    • 1433 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    When considering effective ways to cut government spending, each state should start requiring mandatory drug testing among all its welfare recipients. Cutting welfare benefits to known drug abusers will allow benefits to be doled out more effectively and efficiently to those Americans that are truly in need, diminish drug use in those poverty stricken communities that tend to rely on welfare assistance and take a chunk from the government’s out of control spending.…

    • 696 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Right now only 3 out of the 50 states require drug testing to qualify for benefits. There are 23 other states that are seeking to adopt this same requirement (Alcindor). Of the three states that currently require testing, Florida is the only state that has practiced this for every applicant. As a result of the legislation that took effect of July 1st, people seeking welfare benefits in the state of Florida will have to submit urine, blood, or hair samples to be tested for the use of illicit substances, and pay for the testing (Kondro E721). If the applicant tests negative, then they will be reimbursed for the cost of the drug test. If they test positive, then they are prohibited from receiving benefits for six months. The only way that they can reapply during that six month period is if they can document successful completion of a substance abuse treatment program that meets state criteria. If the legislation passes, then the 23 other states will follow through this policy as well.…

    • 545 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    I believe that drug testing welfare recipients is completely against our constitutional rights of the United States. The Fourth Amendment to the United States constitution is the part of the Bill of Rights that prohibits unreasonable searches and seizers and requires probable cause. So if there is no reason to think someone is using drugs, why drug test them? It is harassment for no reason and very judgmental. Studies have found that there is no difference in the amount of drugs used by welfare applicants and other people. (Cohen, 2011) Also a study has shown that seventy percent of drug users between the ages of 18 and 49 are employed full time. (Cohen, 2011) So why target people that are needing welfare? Simply to give the…

    • 698 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Should people who want welfare be required to take a drug test? People say the fourth amendment protects them because it states “ unreasonable searches and seizures.” Welfare drug testing is a common way to make sure taxpayer dollars are used responsibly. People who have to pay for other people’s welfare because they can go into work disagree with people who even have to think twice about drug testing being required to receive welfare. Taxpayers who pay on welfare think the government is responsible to make sure that their money is being used correctly and to make sure that drug users don’t receive any funds from the state. Why should we support their drug use, if you want drugs you should be able to pay for your own needs. We shouldn’t support basically feeding into their drugs use and letting them slowly kill themselves. Instead we should provide rehabs and hospital treatments. We don’t need to lock the addict up we need to get them help because they’re cable of so much more than what their setting their mindset do. They’re putting a limit to their goals and success in life. You can do…

    • 1019 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Should welfare recipients be drug tested in order for them to receive their food stamps or government assisted checks? With hopefully your answer being yes, many people in the United states believe the thought of forcing a drug test on a person applying for welfare to be completely unconstitutional. There are currently 12,800, 000 Americans on welfare in the United States today. The United States of America currently spends 131.9 billion dollars a year annually on welfare recipients. Yes, those are actual numbers based on a study of the department of commerce. With numbers like that, it’s no surprise the government financial system is the way it is today. The question is, should welfare recipients be randomly drug tested on order for them to receive their government assisted checks and food stamps? And is the thought of random drug testing unconstitutional?…

    • 471 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Welfare Drug Testing

    • 1497 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Should drug tests be required of welfare recipients? No, I don't think so. Welfare recipients are typically extremely poor and are uneducated. Another aspect of welfare recipients is that they are mentally ill. It would seem too ignoble to find ways to deny recipients access to welfare.…

    • 1497 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Welfare in the United States began during the 1930’s during the great depression to help families and individuals with little to no income with assistance. “Many Americans were unhappy with the welfare system, claiming that individuals were abusing the welfare program by not applying for jobs, having more children just to get more aid, and staying unmarried so as to qualify for greater benefits. (welfareinfo.org)” The question today is whether or not drug testing for welfare recipients should be allowed. Drug testing for individuals applying for government cash assistance should be mandatory before assistance is granted.…

    • 1328 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    work one day and mentioned to me that Florida is now drug testing their welfare recipients and so I started doing some research. The current situation in Florida is what ultimately led me to choose this subject as my research topic. Due to this topic being fairly new, my main research sources will come from trusted internet and library sites. There will be little material on certain specifics that will come from books. In…

    • 416 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays