Welfare Essays (1214 words) - , Term Papers

Welfare Public assistance, also known as welfare, is not free money. Public assistance benefits many people who have a low income or no means of income at all. The benefits available are based on the level of income for different sized families and in different states. Welfare is also not to be provided in a biased manner to anyone who applies for it. Welfare in the United States Federal and State Governments serve the financially challenged through about 60 public assistance programs. Most look to receive help through one of the three major programs. These programs are the healthcare programs Medicaid and Medicare, Aid to Families with Dependant Children (AFDC), or the food stamps program. These are all the advantages to public assistance. Even though the welfare system provides money, medical care, food, housing, or other things for most people in need, it puts a dent in the U.S.'s economy. There are too many single jobless parents, elderly, disabled, and others who are in need the public assistance who either never get it or are dependent on it. Yet, there are still many problems in supplying all this to the needy, which is a concern many have. This paper will discuss the programs individually explaining how good causes can lead to a dent in the economy. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Service oversee medical care given to the needy and the elderly through Medicare insurance or the basic services provided by Medicaid. They both have been around since the late 1960's and have grown with time and in 1977 Medicare was taken over by Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) (World Almanac). Funds vary from state to state. Medicare insures anyone over the age of sixty-five and those possessing certain disabling conditions. Medicaid finishes up the rest and is pertained more toward the needy, and places where services are carried out in the form of health care. In some situations, people who may be able to pay for daily needs, but can't afford large medical bills may also be eligible to receive Medicaid for those services unaffordable to them under the HCFA policy guidelines. Some services paid for by Medicaid and Medicare are bills such as doctor's visits, nursing home care, teaching the blind, and assisting the disabled (World Almanac). Most Medicaid funding comes from the federal government, while the rest is supplied by the state. Each state runs its own medical care programs. Together all Medicare and Medicaid expenses added up to about 334 billion dollars of coverage for 51 million people per year who are qualified for the payments in the 1990's (World Almanac). That wouldn't be so bad if one could find out exactly where all that money actually went considering the Medicaid plan alone almost doubled from the 1980's to the 1990's. It also says nothing about even distribution of the money. The almanac states that the money spent has leveled off toward the end of the 90's, partly because state policies restricting the number of recipients receiving benefits and the overall economy was improving. Another program is the Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC). It provides cash benefits to dependent children and the parents or the guardians taking care of them. Most families that qualify for AFDC have just one parent in the home. About 80 percent of these single parent families are headed women (almanac). AFDC also pays benefits to two-parent families if both parents are unemployed. Most AFDC funding comes from the federal government. The states provide the rest of the money and administer the program. The sizes of a families' payment vary from state to state. The only objection to giving AFDC is how many families lied to qualify for the benefits. Some standards need to be set to go further then just a simple fill in the blank evaluation sheet. There are mothers and guardians who have had children who have received aid to support the child and not even used the aid for the intent it was given. The parents should be informed before they even have a child so they do not ma ke these mistakes that the taxpayer has to pay for. Finally, the Food Stamp Program helps low-income households buy more and