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KyLee McKellar
English 2010 Report
July 15, 2015
The System that is Being Abused
It is almost impossible to urinate in front of someone- let alone someone you barely know. But,
being in the healthcare field it is required of you once a month. During the time of the drug test it is
almost a definite yes to losing precious clinic time- which means losing time with actual paying patients.
Normal health insurance usually they pay 80% of the medical bill and then the patient is responsible for
the rest. On welfare, there is only 40% of the medical bill paid and the healthcare is obliged by law to
just accept that.

Above are some charts and representation of what is truly going on in the world with people
with welfare. The chart on the left shows that the dark green is substance abusers, all that is wrong
with them or what they need help with. The chart on the right shows the percentages of adults that are
drug users and where they stand employment wise. The highest percentage is the unemployed drug
users which is normally the people on welfare.

The chart on the left above show those who received medical care based on alcohol/drug abuse,
and the chart on the right shows Emergency Department visits based on misuse/abuse vs. other types of
visits. As you can see, most of them are drug/alcohol abuse/misuse. Which shows that healthcare clinics
are seeing a lot of these types of scenarios, and at least 20% of each category of abuse, the patient is on

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welfare. Which means the healthcare provider only receives 40% of the medical billed paid for, and just
have to suffer or take out money from their own pocket to compensate.

According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, the United States will be in a
shortage of almost 100,000 doctors by the year 2020. If patients who are abusing drugs or alcohol are
the ones who we are seeing the most, we arent making enough money to even pay to keep the lights
on in the building. By that, physicians are becoming forced to retire, or close their practices. In return
shows that there will be a doctor shortage in just five years.
To conclude, we should make it a law that all fifty states require a drug test for all welfare
applicants, and that they remain clean throughout the time they are using the welfare system. Its not
fair to the healthcare workers to have to be drug tested monthly and the patients they practically treat
for free do not have to have any sort of drug test. The welfare patients who are abusing the system and
abusing drugs or alcohol are the reason we will be having a doctor shortage in just five years. Due to the
amount of welfare patients and the fact they only pay 40% of their medical bill, most practices just
cannot stay afloat anymore.

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Work Cited:

Program, Sububstance Abuse Policy Research. Key Research Findings. n.d.

http://www.saprp.org/pm_keyResFind.cfm. 15 July 2015.
BRYCE COVERT, & JOSH ISRAEL. What 7 States Discovered After Spending More Than $1 Million Drug
Testing Welfare Recipients. 15th February 2015. 22nd June 2015.
<http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2015/02/26/3624447/tanf-drug-testing-states/>.
Harold A. Pollack, Ph.D.,. Substance Abuse Policy Research. n.d.
http://www.saprp.org/pm_keyResFind.cfm. 22nd June 2015.
Chandler, D., and Meisel, J. Alcohol and Other Drug, Mental Health, and Domestic Violence Issues:
Effects on Employment and Welfare Tenure After One Year. Sacramento, CA: California Institute for
Mental Health. July 15, 2015
Grant, B.F., and Dawson, D.A. Alcohol and drug use, abuse, and dependence among welfare recipients.
American Journal of Public Health 86:14501454. July 15, 2015
Jayakody, R.; Danziger, S.; and Pollack, H. Welfare reform, substance use and mental health. Journal of
Health Politics, Policy and Law 25:623651. July 15, 2015
Morgenstern, J.; Riordan, A.; McCrady, B.S.; et al. Intensive Case Management Improves Welfare Clients
Rates of Entry and Retention in Substance Abuse Treatment. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families.
Schmidt, L.; Weisner, C.; and Wiley, J. Substance abuse and the course of welfare dependency. American
Journal of Public Health 88:16161622.