Detox or lose your benefits: new welfare proposals are based on bad evidence and worse ethics http://t.co/cxRGsEICzo
— Kyle MacDonald (@kylemacd) August 16, 2015
Compounding this missing data is the lack of proof supporting such an initiative. There is already good evidence from other parts of the world that coercive treatment does not produce the desired benefits. In fact, many who would only benefit from being able to have access to the assistance cannot afford the detox programmes highlighted in the dossier. It would be naïve to assume that people only have problems with drugs and alcohol. Most will have a range of complex and interrelated issues in which their physical and mental health is also compromised, which will require specialised treatment with psychiatric help and foot bath detox systems, amongst other options. This complexity is not matched by a sophisticated system of treatment, or in some areas even a basic treatment plan that is attainable by the average individual receiving benefits from the state. Services have become increasingly specialised and resistant to accepting people who don’t meet their strict criteria, leading to high demand but low coverage, especially when it comes to rural areas. Navigating such complex pathways into and around treatment would challenge the most cognitively able.