Welfare and Unemployment drug testing

679 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Intro and thesis for welfare reform act

Before the economy started to make its rebound not too long ago, many people were losing their jobs that they had held for some time. Many of these people applied to the government for some sort of financial help, due to many people having house payments, car payments, along with everyday necessities to pay for, and not having their income. Some of these people are still on aid programs such as welfare, and many Americans are worried that the funds for these type of programs will not last and are only putting our government into debt farther then they already are. I will discuss whether or not recipients of benefits from programs funded by the government should have to undergo drug testing to be able to receive these payments.
Back in 1996 the government passed the federal welfare reform, and since then states have been proposing drug testing of the applicants and recipients of these types of programs. In recent years, many state legislations have tried to pass laws that would force these programs to do random drug testing, much like you are subject to at many jobs. In fact, personnel paid by the government signs their contract that states within it that they are subject to drug testing. The funding for these programs is coming from the government so why shouldn’t the recipients be tested also?
Legislation has mainly been focusing on suspicion-less or random drug testing. Due to this the legislations have yet to pass one of these proposals, due to the fact that people argue that this is an invasion of their privacy and is unconstitutional. They say it violates their fourth amendment constitutional rights because they are being subjected to unreasonable search and seizure without probable cause as the fourth amendment states, “Th...

... middle of paper ...

...n this consideration. I hope that the facts given to you make you think a little harder and realize that it is not an easy thing to decide. People will always have different opinions, but I do believe that the benefits would out-weigh the bad, and that the government should do drug testing for welfare and unemployment recipients.

Works Cited

CNN Politics – http://articles.cnn.com/2011-06-01/politics/florida.welfare.drug.testing_1_drugtesting-drug-screening-tanf?_s=PM:POLITICS
“Drug Testing and Public Assistance.” Drug Testing and Public Assistance. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 April 2014.
"Fourth Amendment." LII / Legal Information Institute. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2014.
“Michael’s House – Drug & Alcohol Treatment Centers.” Michaels House. N.p., n.d. Web 20 April 2014.
The Drug Direction Report. (Nov. 18, 1999): P169
USA TODAY Pros and Cons to Drug Testing (Sept 2004)

Show More
Related

  • Recidivism Rates of Paroled Domestic Violence Offenders

    853 Words  | 2 Pages

    Treatment for substance abuse vital to reduce prison recidivism rate, The Medical News, March 14, 2008,http://www.news-medical.net/news/2008/03/14/36306.aspx

    Read More

  • Morehead Inspiration Center

    1116 Words  | 3 Pages

    The center combines a safe housing environment with structured educational programs that incorporate the philosophies of Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous. Alcoholics Anonymous is the original self help group founded on principles that provide support and encouragement for recovering alcoholics. New members are encouraged to work with a spon...

    Read More

  • The Unfairness of Drug Testing in Low-Wage Jobs

    866 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...ult, and some times it does not give a result at all. It is unfair because it only targets certain workers; mainly low wage employees. It is unjust because people are automatically accused of using drugs, and that is why the drug test is given. Drug testing should not be abolished, but it should be a more controlled issue since it is something everyone in the US must go through.

    Read More

  • Mandatory Drug Testing for Welfare Recipients and Public Assistance

    2059 Words  | 5 Pages

    "States Consider Drug Testing for Welfare Recipients." FoxNews.com - Breaking News | Latest News | Current News. 26 March 2009. Web. 31 January 2011

    Read More

  • Should Welfare Recipients Be Drug Tested?

    571 Words  | 2 Pages

    There is an ongoing debate over whether or not Welfare recipients should be drug tested to receive the benefits. The lines of reasoning from both sides of this argument have unambiguous points. Those who oppose the idea of drug testing say that it is unconstitutional, and violates the Fourth Amendment. Furthermore, they claim that this law stereotypes and discriminates against the poor

    Read More

  • Welfare Recipients Drug Tested

    1318 Words  | 3 Pages

    Once one state passes a law on drug testing it sends a message to other states and makes sense for other states to pass the same law. This is what our government wants, about half of the states are considering similar measures.... ... middle of paper ... ... Now its up to government officials to make the correct decision and forget about drug testing welfare recipients. Works Cited Carpenter, Rachel.

    Read More

  • Should Welfare Recipients Be Drug Tested?

    1056 Words  | 3 Pages

    There is an ongoing debate over whether or not welfare recipients should be drug tested to receive the benefits. Both sides of the argument have merit. Those who oppose the idea of drug testing say that it is unconstitutional and violates the Fourth Amendment. Furthermore, they claim that this law stereotypes and discriminates against those from low socioeconomic demographics, implying that because they are poor, they must be drug addicts. However, those who support the law note that its intended purpose is to ensure that taxpayer money is not being squandered on people who only plan to abuse this assistance. Only nine states so far have instituted drug testing of candidates for welfare assistance. This drug testing has proven to be prohibitively expensive in many cases. Consequently, some states only test subjects with whom they find suspicion, or who have admitted to past drug use. Though proposed drug testing of welfare applicants initially appears to be a good idea to eliminate potential abusers of the system from receiving assistance, it appears that even more money may be wasted on the testing process, which negates the savings that are the primary objective of the law.

    Read More

  • Government Welfare Benefits

    929 Words  | 2 Pages

    Government welfare was created to help people who were struggling get back on their feet again. People now abuse this privilege that was meant for good. People expect the government to give them food stamps, free health care, and other necessities of life. By doing this, tax dollars of the working class are taking care of people who will not work. To solve this problem, welfare should be temporary not permanent, prove you are looking for a job, have random drug screenings, and work in community service in exchange for welfare. Although government welfare can be a great resource to those in need, there needs to be restrictions and limits put on it so it will not be abused.

    Read More

  • The drug control policy of the United States

    1414 Words  | 3 Pages

    The current situation of drug control in the United States is imperfect and inadequate. Millions of men and women, both young and old, are affected by illicit drug use. It costs the United States about $6,123 every second because of drug use and its consequences (Office). Moreover, 90 percent of all adults with a substance use disorder started using under the age of 18 and half under the age of 15. Children who first smoke marijuana under the age of 14 are five times more likely to abuse drugs as adults than those who first use marijuana at age 18. Finally, the children of alcoholics are four times more likely to develop problems with alcohol (Prevent). Current legislation that has to do with the United States’ drug control policy is the Controlled Substances Act, which regulates the manufacture, importation, possession, use, and distribution of certain substances (Shannon). In 1966, Congress passed the Narcotic Addict Rehabilitation Act also known as the NARA. This legislati...

    Read More

  • Drug Policy

    1001 Words  | 3 Pages

    The United States government projected $25 million to support schools in school-based drug testing and other drug-free programs. In 2003, many schools across the nation provided their own funding for student drug testing programs. The President wants to increase this program for 2005. He also wants to continue funding for ONDCP. This media campaign sends anti-drug messages to young adults via web sites, functions, and events on drug awareness. This approach will include information for parents and youth to encourage early intervention against drug use in 2005.

    Read More

  • Random Drug Testing is Ethical and Necessary

    1164 Words  | 3 Pages

    It is also very hard to decide if the test is an invasion of employee privacy. “The ethical status of workplace drug testing can be expressed as a question of competing interests, between the employer’s right to use testing to reduce drug related harms and maximize profits, over against the employee’s right to privacy, particularly with regard to drug use which occurs outside the workplace.” (Cranford 2). The rights of the employee have to be considered. The Supreme Court case, Griswold vs. Connecticut, outlines the idea that every person is entitled to a privacy zone.

    Read More

  • Sociological Perspectives on Alcohol Use, Problems, and Policy

    2339 Words  | 5 Pages

    Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (Office of Applied Studies). Treatment Episode Data Set(TEDS): Highlights-2003. National Admissions to Substance Abuse Treatment Services, Rockville, MD: Department of Health and Human Services, 2003.

    Read More

  • Suicide Prevention

    1876 Words  | 4 Pages

    ... Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (2012): ERIC. Web. The Web. The Web.

    Read More

  • Symptoms, Causes, and Effects of Alcoholism

    796 Words  | 2 Pages

    Johnson, Vernon. Everything You Need To Know About Chemical Dependency: Vernon Johnson's Guide For Families. Minneapolis: Johnson Institute, 1990.

    Read More

  • Persuasive Speech: We All Should Support Mandatory Drug Testing in Schools

    819 Words  | 2 Pages

    Mandatory and Random drug testing in schools are being more used today in our society. Mandatory drug testing is a test to show the school and the government about the well being of us teenagers.

    Read More

More about Welfare and Unemployment drug testing

Open Document