Rand Paul wants solve the increasing use of heroin with a jobs program.
At a New Hampshire town hall on Wednesday, Paul discussed welfare reform and work as a reward, not a punishment, to receive welfare if someone is able-bodied.
“If you work all day long, you don’t have time to do heroin,” Paul said as he veered into drugs and other problems during the talk.
He later expanded on his approach to drugs, according to Mediaite.
“We need to treat it more as a health problem and less as an incarceration problem,” Paul said. He is more open to treatment, not prison time, as part of his campaign for criminal justice reform.
In context, Paul was not accusing those on welfare of avoiding work to use drugs, but it was a glib aside on the causes and effects of employment and drug abuse. Many people are functionally addicted to a drug or alcohol and keep a job.
In addition, at least 13 states have passed legislation to test those who receive welfare for drug use. Arizona and Florida, which have imposed programs, have found very few people who have tested positive for drug use. Legal issues also make the practice questionable because of Fourth Amendment concerns.
A 2011 report from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services discussed past studies that found a slightly higher rate of illicit drug use than the general population. Depending on methodology, such as the timeframe and whether alcohol is included, studies have found drug use rates lower and higher among welfare recipients relative to the general public.
The link between drug use and public assistance, from the data available thus far, is not as strong as some conservatives claim.
