Should the Unemployed Have to Take a Drug Test to Get Their Unemployment Benefits?
Hatch says a drug test for the unemployed and welfare recipients is an incentive for getting people off their addiction. Quit the drugs and you get your cash. Hatch says most employers drug test their employees before hiring them, so why not do the same for the unemployed? The argument may make sense, but would it actually work?
Drug testing the unemployed-The Pros
No money for drugs-Let's face it. No one would want their tax dollars spent on funding a drug user's habit. And rather than see this money go to someone who is not doing something positive with that cash, save it for someone who is legitimately trying to survive in a bad economy with their measly unemployment benefits?
Get help for drug addicts-If someone does test positive for drugs, Hatch's amendment requires that person be enrolled in a treatment program. There is nothing good about being a drug addict, so maybe denying someone unemployment benefits and getting him or her drug treatment will be the wake up call needed to change a destructive lifestyle.
Drug test the unemployed-The Cons
Big Brother is watching-Is the government invading our privacy by suggesting a drug test for those on unemployment and public assistance? One of the best quotes I found regarding this argument comes from Matt Welch from Reason.com: "If you are at all dependent on the state, whether by choice or force, and you don't have the good manners to be powerful, you will always stand the risk of being treated like a patient at a criminal asylum. It is as good a reason as any other to resist further encroachment of the government on our private lives."
Who pays for this?-Senator Hatch says the money saved by not paying unemployment benefits would go to paying for the drug tests. So the cash is spent either way and no money would really be saved. In addition Harold Pollack, Helen Ross Professor of Social Service Administration at the University of Chicago has said after studying the issue of giving a drug test to those on public assistance: "population drug screening is unwise. The likely consequence is to stretch states' already overburdened screening, assessment, and referral systems with large numbers of casual marijuana users."
Orrin Hatch and the drug companies-If you think Senator Hatch is proposing this amendment to drug test the unemployed to help with America's war on drugs, think again. As reported here on Associated Content, Hatch has numerous connections to pharmaceutical industries, which would indicate he has other motives for wanting a drug test for the unemployed.
Drug test the unemployed-What this author thinks
While I do not want to see any tax dollars go towards wasteful spending, I can't help but see this amendment as discrimination and prejudice towards the unemployed. With the unemployment rate still close to 10% in America and one job for every 5 applicants, why treat the jobless as criminals and losers who are living off the government? The government should spend more time trying to get people off unemployment and into jobs and job training instead stereotyping the unemployed and playing politics with the unemployment insurance they have paid into.
Sources:
Grim, Ryan Orrin Hatch: Drug Test the Unemployed, Huffington Post June 22, 2010
Montopoli, Brian Orrin Hatch Calls For Drug Testing Welfare Recipients, CBS News online, June 16, 2010
Relative, Saul 2010 Unemployment Extension Bill: Drug Test Amendment Orrin Hatch's Payback?, Associated Content, June 21, 2010
Welch, Matt Orrin Hatch: Drug-test Welfare Recipients, Reason.com, June 16, 2010
Published by J Budd, RN - Featured Contributor in Health & Wellness
I am a registered nurse and former radio broadcast journalist in the NYC/NJ area for over a decade. Some of the stations I have worked with include Bloomberg News Radio, Sirius Satellite Radio, Fox News Rad... View profile
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19 Comments
Post a CommentSurprising that in a time where the election clearly expressed the position of the American voter, that there would be such a division. While the election results suggest that we want a smaller and less intrusive government, why would we want to sacrifice the rights of other Americans? This appears to be an extremely juvenile expression of babies wanting their bottles too. Probably the same regurgitated predjudices rooted in fear, such as the gay population in the military that have to compromise their rights in the name of dominant homophobes. For a country so deep-rooted in freedom of expression, there seems to be alot of us that feel as if that right belongs to a subdivided few. Wheather it's the drugs we take, the words we speak, or the partners we choose, there is always some flag-waving ignophyte belching biased ignorance in boisterous protest in defense of the American way; contradicting that very fundamental right that we are all intended to posess. Funny how we care about what
Curious, that spending more money for the tests would be considerred cost effective. And what about gambling addicts and alchoholics, is it that these tend to be more socially acceptable forms of addictions and therefore less subject to scrutiny? Does the person who grows their own pot cost the taxpayer anything extra? The reality is there will always be people who will abuse a priveledge, but selective enforcement is simply acting on prejudices instead of using the funds that the governmnt claims to be "short of" constructively. The current unemployment crisis is a partial result of the previous government-terms policies that complemented illegal immigration, supressed employee rights, and supported lobby-interests critical to bottom-line enthusiasts. Why does the government always seem to finance (without oversight) marquee issues, and then cry about the national debt when it relates to less-fortunate Americans? Our national debt is never going to be paid off, it is a tool to balance
Oh yeah.. I like the URINE or You're OUT program from Brgitte... I'm unemployed and lost my benefits after my first six months... I didn't get to advance on to the other Tiers.. I guess I was laid off to late last year... I also like the comment about congress taking a polygraph. I think they are some of the most dishonest people around...
"Living off of the government?" P-shawww...they paid their premium into those "benefits." Folks. Save up for your own rainy-day fund. The gubbermint is only out to destroy all they can. LOL @ Anti-Republican!
If anyone took this test and failed they wouldn't just lose benefits,they would also be among the first to be rounded up for the FEMA camps.
I dont mind peeing in a cup to get my benefits if congress will take a polygraph to keep their job 8-). Fter all, it's all about keeping everyone honest....isn't it?
Go to change.org and sign the petition that extends unemployment benefits. Also sign the petition that adds a tier V to unemployment.
Your last point is stated well. We can't assume that everyone out of work these days is a low-life. I'm just back after a 6-week break from online writing. Sorry to miss some of your stuff.
@Jan.. He didn't say a blood alcohol test. He said drug test. I need my benefits, and have no problem peeing the cup.. I may be slightly offended of another attempt by the republicans to bad mouth the unemployed, and put false claims out there against us, but hey, it would slap in his face, when he finds we aren't...
Maybe I'm missing something but I don't see how a drug test proves that anyone is a drug addict. Would I fail to pass if I drank a glass of wine the night before? If so, I don't think the test proves anything. Perhaps people have to have a certain level of alcohol, indicating they are truly drunk at the time of the test. Could someone clarify this for me? I'll go searching for the info on my own but it seems very strict to me. I also agree with Wayne that testing for drugs starts with the presumption of guilt and that people who are unemployed are automatically drug users. In this economy, no, I do not believe that many unemployed are drug users. In fact, when another writer covered the unemployment benefits extension, people were begging for drug tests, just to keep the benefits.