Welfare drunks and other myths

Welfare recipients' rates of alcohol and drug problems are similar to rates for the general population and for those not on welfare, according to findings from the 1992 National Longitudinal Alcohol Epidemiologic Survey.1 Some 4-14% of respondents who were enrolled in any of five assistance programs drank heavily (i.e., consumed, on average, more than two drinks daily) or used drugs without a prescription, compared with 5-15% among the population overall and those not on welfare. Likewise, 1-8% of welfare recipients had more serious problems of alcohol or other drug abuse or dependency, compared with 2-8% of the general population and those not on welfare. Drinking and drug problems were less common among recipients of supplemental security income and Medicaid than among those receiving benefits through food stamps, Aid to Families with Dependent Children or the Special Supplemental Food Program for Women, Infants, and Children. Men were more likely than women to have drinking problems; age differentials varied among the measures and assistance programs. The analysts suggest that although rates of alcohol and drug problems are generally low among welfare recipients, prevention and treatment programs targeted at groups in which these problems are most prevalent would facilitate the goals of work, responsibility and reduced reliance on aid that underlie welfare reform efforts.

1. B. F. Grant and D. A. Dawson, "Alcohol and Drug Use, Abuse, and Dependence Among Welfare Recipients," American Journal of Public Health, 86:1450-1454,1996.

Copyright The Alan Guttmacher Institute May/Jun 1997
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