Drug Testing Welfare Recipients

Welfare began during the great depression in the 1930’s then, just like now, there were many families that needed help from the government, and that is why they introduced welfare. Today there are many different kinds of welfare like social welfare, corporate welfare, and child welfare. There are other programs like Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) and Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). These programs kept families together, children became healthier and often times, recipients are able to use the welfare to help them to find a new job. Welfare could even save some lives. Like everything else, this system has flaws, and many might argue that the tax payer dollars are being wasted. Some citizens believe that recipients of welfare should undergo mandatory drug testing.

There are many pros and cons of drug testing people on welfare. According to State Drug Testing Requirements for Welfare Recipients, by Abby E. Schaberg that drug testing people who want to apply for welfare would be considered as an unreasonable search and therefore violate the Fourth Amendment. However, the constitution of such laws has yet to be definitively determined. Legislatures in at least 28 states are considering drug testing applicants or recipients of the public assisted programs. Recently, Florida became the first state to require adults applying for cash welfare to undergo drug screenings. In this same article the Florida Gov. Rick Scott defended the new rule by arguing that:

“It’s not right for taxpayer money to be paying for somebody’s drug addiction. On top of that, this is going to increase personal responsibility and person accountability. We shouldn’t be subsidizing people’s addiction.”