In 2017, the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (DHHR) launched a three-year pilot program that screened drug use among recipients of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). Otherwise known as WV WORKS, TANF provides cash assistance to low-income families and helps with child care, skills training, and job searching. HB 5582 makes the pilot program a permanent fixture in TANF despite the state’s own data demonstrating that the program has failed to meet its original goals of helping applicants access treatment and recovery.
Extending drug screening across the program is an egregious policy choice that has negative implications reaching beyond the scope of its intent, especially as West Virginia continues to grapple with an enduring substance use epidemic. TANF already has strict requirements and time limits in place, one of which is that recipients can only be enrolled for 60 months in their lifetime. Funding for TANF has been frozen since 1997 and inflation has reduced its value by over 50 percent; unsurprisingly, the program has been steadily shrinking for at least the past decade.
Drug screening and testing in TANF has proven ineffective in West Virginia. There are no returns on such an investment — not to taxpayers, the state, nor, most importantly, TANF enrollees. Between 2017 and 2025, 22,700 drug use questionnaires have been issued, with fewer than one percent resulting in positive tests. Of the 22,700 people who completed drug use questionnaires, 2,218 were referred for testing and only 209 had positive test results.
Rendering benefits contingent on passing a drug test for individuals otherwise eligible for cash assistance does not meaningfully address substance use problems. Instead, it does quite the opposite — drug screening creates barriers for those who may otherwise seek treatment and support. Those who fear losing their benefits or custody of their children may be less likely to disclose their substance use, making treatment less accessible. In the eight years since the program’s implementation, only one person has successfully gone through a drug treatment program that allowed them to keep their benefits. This highlights the inefficacy of the program, as its primary goal was to connect TANF enrollees with meaningful support; expanding it will shift resources that could otherwise go toward improving quality of life for enrollees to something that actively hinders it.
In 2019, West Virginia spent just roughly 22 percent of TANF dollars on basic assistance, a proportion that has shrunk significantly over the past several decades, reducing the reach of the program to families in need. As West Virginia continues to look for ways to address its addiction and substance use rates, such policies ultimately penalize individuals for systemic problems.
In a state already facing budget challenges, dedicating resources to an initiative that further stigmatizes individuals with low incomes—while worsening their material conditions—contradicts the core mission of TANF and other social programs, as well as best practices for public health. Rather than punishing TANF recipients by extending the drug screening program, West Virginia must recommit to providing basic assistance to families. Redirecting funds toward these initiatives would better serve low-income families and help create a healthier West Virginia.
Contact your lawmakers today and tell them to vote no on HB 5582, which expands drug testing in the TANF program. You can send them a letter using this link.
