this is why some states won't even let you get divorced until you can prove that you've lived at separate addresses for at least a year. not fucking joking either
I was something like $250 over the annual income threshold to qualify for Medicaid for my first son's birth. My employer was "kind" enough to allow me unpaid time off long enough to get me under the threshold, but having an "all or nothing" threshold just to qualify was a little frustrating.
It is ridiculous that assistance programs are all or nothing. No, it is moronic. It damn near acheives the opposite of its intended purpose, to be a safety net or lift up so people can get back on their feet and prosper. Instead, it incentivizes people to remain poor if they can't manage a big enough jump in income to make up for the loss of assistance. You can pick up an extra shift here and there, or get a modest raise, and end up LOSING income as a result. That's absurd.
Those programs should gradually taper such that when you make more income at work, you always also still net more income overall. Past a certain point, instead of dropping to nothing, the assistance lowers gradually the more you make from other income. Progress is a bit slowed that way, but it is still progress, not a pit.
It’s ridiculous that we means test our safety nets at all, instead of providing for all and just clawing back from those who don’t need it at tax time, or giving people who make above a certain amount (like idk 150k single 200k married?) the option to pay it back through W-2 tax automatically, similar to claiming exemptions and stuff. It would be easier, and achieve the same outcome, but would help a ton more people, as targeted support tends to be socially stigmatized, in addition to nearly guaranteeing a life of extreme poverty to use.
Heck, with the number of people we need to handle current social safety net programs, there’s a solid chance it would be cheaper to just give it to everyone.
The hardest time my wife and I had financially was when we were escaping poverty. We made 2K to much the year my first son was born to qualify for any government assistance. My wife's main memories of when he was first born was of the endless stream of bill collectors calling in to demand payment. We were buying diapers instead of paying them.
My mom decided to gradually start working a while back, she's on all the government assistance programs you can think of and after years of that decided she wanted some financial independence.
She worked part time for like 3 months at a seasonal holiday place and made something like $2.5k. It was great, she was planning on doing it again the next year and seeing what she could do on the summer. She was happy, more of a person, made some friends.
The only problem is with that extra $2.5k she lost like $6k in benefits the next year, which for someone getting a couple hundred bucks a month to surving is a lot. So she never went back and fell back into a semi reclusive state. I can't blame her for it either, who wants to go to work to lose money at the end of the day.
I'm in a similar boat. I make enough where I don't qualify for the assistance but not enough to actually be able to afford health insurance. Instead I have to pay extra every tax season for being in a situation I didn't ask for.
Republicans love adding poverty traps and means testing to everything. I don't know why this specific thing is like this, but I would bet money it's because a Republican negotiated it
My wife and I have had this conversation trying to get services for our son with autism. I make too much to qualify for anything, but my companies insurance sucks so bad that I end up paying thousands out of pocket each month.
When your pay is high the marketplace punishes you with higher rates and essentially forces you onto your employer plan. It’s not a real functioning marketplace
I believe Sweden has the best paternity leave for both parents. 3 years for each and they have an excellent healthcare system compared to the dumpster fire in the USA.