What exactly makes a person worthy or unworthy of receiving assistance if there is something that they need and cannot provide or do not have access to?

After reading the text, I do not agree with the ideology Regan was attempting to establish. I do not think that Regan realized how times were changes before him as well as the family dynamic. Regan did not change the formula once he saw that the old one was not working any more. During this time there were increases in single parent households as well a rise in the divorce rate. There were even increases in the unemployment rate.  So, what exactly makes a person worthy or unworthy of receiving assistance if there is something that they need and cannot provide or do not have access to? America has never been able to fit into one single box and I believe that this is what they were trying to do here. I believe that the wording should have changed. Or maybe some guidelines be established and if you qualify for said assistance then you will be eligible to receive it.   Axinn, June & Stern, Mark. (2018). Social Welfare:  A History of the American Response to Need. (9th Ed.). New York, New York. Pearson Education, Inc.