I agree as some who actually NEEDS welfare programs s because of severe disabilities it makes me embarrassed to say i receive food stamps or ssi…
Please do explain the “who can verifiably no longer work” comment.
First, keep in mind that anyone with symptoms similar to ALS won’t have ANY tests that work. Many poisons and toxins don’t have tests as well. The process for diagnosis literally is throw every test at a person and when nothing comes back positive, and if it looks like they are sick enough, they get an ALS diagnosis. If not, a referral to a psychiatrist or something.
When living in Texas, I simply needed just a note to give potential employers about accommodations I would need in order to work. Without this, no employer will even consider me. Problem is that doctors DON’T WRITE ACCOMMODATION NOTES unless there is a conclusive diagonosis. It isnt enough to just conclusively demonstrate that I physically cannot do many things. Yes that is tested and proven I have very significant limitations. Problem is why. Unless the why can be conclusively proven (something that is not possible for bad reactions to say monsanto and other farm chemicals), then no accommodation letter is given.
I was deemed too sick for accommodation letters, even though they wouldn’t write them because what I have doesn’t have a test formit.
So then there is a referral to specialists. Guess what, in Texas, medical for those without work doesn’t include specialists or tests I needed.
So no diagnosis as ALS and many toxin related things have no tests that work for them, no accommodations letter, no employers that can consider me without such letters, and no aid because no doctor will sign anything.
All you do when you say things need to be verified is tell people they will literally need to either beg on the street for food, or do something they shouldn’t just to eat.
Food must be a given. We are putting out literally hundreds of thousands of different man made chemicals into our environment, mostly with no methods of determining what effects they have on people.
So what would you have people like me do? Luckily family helped. If not for family, what options would you say? Prove it, how?
If we have money to send to foreign wars, we have money for feeding people. I didn’t know that living next to a cotton farm would ruin my life. Ifmyou leave me with no legal choice but to literally sit in the street, then what realistically do you think average people in my situation would do? Good thing family helped. Your solution isn’t a solution. Food must be a given
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In ohio, if you get cash assist you have to do volunteer hours and if you have get food stamps and your children are over 6 years old you also have to do volunteer hours!
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That sounds like a very difficult situation to be in and I agree that some are very difficult, if not impossible to diagnose. I dont have the answers for all of the questions as there are some things I am still learning myself. I can speak from my own personal experience where one day I am ok, a little tired, but ok and then within 24 hours, throwing my guts up, walking nightmares and heart palpatations that leave me unable to walk from one room to the next. I have lived on the streets, experienced homelessness at a young age, unable to afford food, much less a home and still these programs would not help and I unfortunately, did not have family. It sounds like your situation is more than just a welfare reform and could also benefit if doctors spent more time looking at total systems instead of jerking you around as they do many when a diagnosis is not available by normal testing, but thats another subject. What I am suggesting is those who are deemed 100% unemployable due to medical issues, should be able to utilize, but what that looks like, well that requires more productive discussion with people who may have more insight on how to achieve it.
It all needs to be reworked so people can get off of it. Sadly alot of times good peole get stuck needing it and then can’t get out. Perhaps a sliding scale as you try to get out instead of a flat cut off rate $700 you get all benefits, $701 you get nothing… it just doesn’t equate. (Just an example, but thats literally how people get stuck.)
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I understand the frustration and concept of this, however people sometimes need help and it is not feasible to put time limits we have tried that. That being said, I believe you should have to pass a random (?monthly) drug test (not including THC) in order to receive benefits, because if you are using drugs, then you need a different program.
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I completely agree. There should be strict limits on how long in your lifetime you can receive TANF and EBT. Also illegal imigrants should not be allowed to get benefits. These programs are supposed to be there to help you get on your feet during hard times. Not to abuse it forever. It does not take 4 years to find a job!!! I grew up on the system, watching people abuse the sysytem, and refused to be a part of that. The only people that should be receiving EBT and tax payers money, are our disabled and elderly individuals. Although i think we need SSDI, I have seen too many people abuse that too. We need a program that helps individuals with disibilities to find gainful employement based on their abilities. They could make more to live off of working just part time doing something that they are able to do. I am considered disabled, but refuse to sit home all day feeling sorry for myself, getting depressed, and creating more health issues by doing nothing.
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While I can absolutely agree to an extent, I do think there needs to be exceptions. There are disabled Americans (permanent or long term) for example, who are medically unable to work that rely on these benefits to make ends meet. SNAP and the other government benefits help to fill in gaps for these people. Without access, they would not be able to afford groceries or other things. We have to be careful with demands like this and make sure that the people who legitimately need and rely on these benefits long term have access without issue so that they don’t fall through the cracks.
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Wow. Let’s see you look at a family or a mother with more than one child and tell the first child that they get to eat and go to the doctor and then look at the other and tell it to starve and suffer. That’s foul and gross. That’s so Anti American that it makes me sick that this kind of thinking actually exists. Coming from one conservative Christian Republican to anyone with this kind attitude, I pray you reevaluate and find some humanity. This line of thinking is as wrong as those who take advantage of the system. Children should NEVER be punished or go without because of the circumstances created by the parents. Point blank. Period. This issue and the system cannot be corrected overnight nor in a single presidential term. Starving and punishing children certainly isn’t the way to do it with all due respect. No American … no human being in fact… should ever be okay with children going without necessities. There are better ways to go about fixing what is broken in our system. Starving and neglecting our children isn’t one of them.
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Whatever happened to “the village?” Social Security is supposed to be "the village, " taking care of senior citizens who can’t work anymore. Taking care of disabled individuals who can’t work. What do you propose should be done with these people? Let them die? Kill them when they’re no longer productive? In that case, providing for children would not be mandatory. They’re not productive citizens. They can’t work. Should we kill them, too? Should we just let them figure out how to survive? Seniors & the disabled are living on $1,000 to $1,500 a month. With mortgage rates & rental rates, their entire income is depleted. No money for food, utilities, phone, medications, no TV because the gov’t decided to go digital, and digital now costs upwards of $70 to $300 a month. Believe me, Social Security income is no walk in the park. Recipients are below the poverty level.
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Loss of benefits if convicted of capital crimes, or proven gang/ terrorist affiliation
Time to revamp the entire system. The federal government should not be your mommy or daddy. Eliminate the agencies and replace with a single agency that provides a one-stop shop that links a recipient with family, personal and mandatory financial counseling, mandatory household budget training, a monthly stipend, instead of food stamps, Medicaid, Section 8,etc. and job training.
Limit assistance to three years.
They need to provide people with the necessary resources to bridge across to independence. These programs should have vehicle programs attached to them, so transportation isn’t an obstacle. They need to offer one time used vehicle financing up to a certain amount and or donated vehicle options. When able body people have options to get to work then there are no excuses.
It is not an immigrants only issue. I know of a couple of families that thought this way. The current system encourages them not to reach out to better themselves
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The monthly stipend allows them to spend the money on booze and cigarettes rather than feeding their children.
The three year stipulation I think is too long for able-bodied persons, and too short for those who are not. Veterans need this while they are recovering from PTSD.
I think I would like to revitalize an old idea. During the Great Depression, we had a program Called the Works Progress Administration (WPA). We basically employed welfare recipients to better our infrastructure. We still have some of their projects. Not fun work, and encouraged them to get off of it.
A cell phone is absolutely necessary for anyone to get and keep a job. Some form of transportation is necessary as well. I am not suggesting they need Mercedes. Just reliable transport. The WPA job program might benefit from taking unreliable/non-working cars and making them useful to welfare recipients.
Actually, it was set up for those who could not save enough to take care of themselves during their retirement. Intended to help those who could no longer work, and intended for the burden of the poor to be spread across all taxpayers so that the burden wasn’t too great for one or two. The “entitlement” comes from expecting since we paid into this system, that every one of us should have our retirement paid for.
Not exactly entitlements. I paid far more into Social Security and Medicare than I will ever get back. Veterans disability is to only help recover the loss of income they could have been making were they healthy enough to work after sacrificing for their country. The problem is, even these three systems are being abused as much as the other welfare systems.
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Wisely put. In these harsh economic times, some who are disabled or otherwise qualified for Medicare/Medicaid as their only income should not be cut out and thrown into the cold. However, it should be for OUR American citizens only! Also trim up the Social Services/Medicare/Medicaid departments. There is NO excuse for inefficiency, power plays, long phone lines, continuous ‘please hold’ loops to avoid servicing Americans on the other end of the phone. p.s. I do NOT receive either benefit. I know of many as I have worked in Healthcare for decades.
Welfare applicants should : 1) agree to some form of contraception, no more children born to a mother who cannot support them. A female applicant who refuses, should be disqualified. (Please spare me the “you’re fascist” comments. If you want government help, you must follow rules)
2) submit to RANDOM drug testing, following a strict “chain of custody” protocol.
3) agree to appropriate training for suitable job placement within the first six months on the program.
4) “FOOD STAMPS” to be used for nutritious food items only: no candies, chips, soft drinks or what is commonly known as junk food.
I believe we have some great ideas and it appears i posted a similar post a couple days before your original post.
It would be beneficial since your string has more viewers to tag my string to your s