Just received the following "ALERT" from a local social service agency. The director of the agency is very concerned that monies will be taken away from drug using parents, thereby hurting the children.
My concern is that these children have drug using parents!!! Are we really helping them by continuing to allow their parents to behave in an irresponsible way, not to mention dangerous and illegal. Maybe when a parent tests positive for drugs:
1. The children should be temporarily removed from the home.
2. The parent is given the opportunity to get into a drug program.
3. The parent is given the choice to practice "PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY" and get their priorities in order, stop using drugs and regain custody of their children.
This way the children are protected.
These benefits are funded by tax dollars. There are rules and regulations that are supposed to be followed to receive them.If you need state/federal aid, then you must comply with these rules and regulations.
Why on earth should we use our tax dollars to fund drug users.
If we test and find that parents are actively using drugs, do we not have a responsibility to make sure the children are taken care of? I don't think that will necessarily happen if we just hand them more money.
The following is a perfect example of why the "system" is broken. Most social workers do not believe in personal responsibility.
Drives me Crazy!!!!
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ACTION ALERT: Required Drug Screening for Public Assistance
Would Penalize Struggling Families
Health and Human Services Committee hearing set for 1:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 11, Capitol Building Room 1510.
Please contact a member of the HHS Committee by clicking here.
What the proposed law would do: LB940 would establish a process for drug screening of applicants and recipients of public assistance if the Department of Health and Human Services has reason to believe the applicant/recipient is using a controlled substance. If the applicant/recipient tests positive, they will be declared ineligible for public assistance for a year and will be referred to a substance treatment program.
Why we oppose the bill: We believe it will harm, not help, families already in desperate conditions. Eliminating a parent’s ability to receive cash assistance will harm the vulnerable children in the household. By eliminating eligibility for benefits, an applicant or recipient would lose his/her access to Medicaid, thus rendering them unable to afford any substance abuse treatment for which they were referred.
The public policy goal of cash assistance is to transition to economic self-sufficiency and paid employment. LB940 will push already struggling families further from resources that may help them get back on track.
