May 4, 2016

Rutigliano Pushes for Legislation to Address Elder Abuse

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HARTFORD- To determine the best practices for reporting and identifying elderly abuse, neglect, exploitation, and abandonment, state Rep. David Rutigliano (R-123) strongly supported legislation a require the state Department of Social Services develop a strategic plan on standards for reporting cases of elder abuse.

Rutigliano said, “Elder abuse, like many other forms of domestic abuse, is an often hidden phenomenon that affects hundreds of thousands of older Americans. The enactment of stronger safeguards against the abuse of elders is a triumph for states like Connecticut, older adults and their families.”

The legislation, HB-5289, An Act Concerning Protective Services for Vulnerable Persons would require the Department of Social Services to incorporate national guidelines regarding protective services, align state and national data collection, develop a training program for mandated reporters, and formalize a system of follow-up with those who report to Protective Services for the Elderly.

The bill would also require our Commission on Aging to evaluate whether the state should adopt a protective services system for all adults. Currently, Connecticut is one of very few states whose Protective Services for the Elderly program serves only adults who are 60 years of age or older. In other words, except for a patchwork of programs that serve some very specific populations, no one investigates or addresses abuse of adults aged 19 to 59.

Connecticut’s Protective Services for the Elderly Program (PSE), administered by the Department of Social Services, is designed to safeguard older adults from physical, mental and emotional abuse, neglect (including self-neglect), abandonment and financial abuse and exploitation by investigating and responding appropriately to reports of elder abuse.

The AARP stated in testimony that the most prevalent form of elder abuse is financial exploitation, which can cause injures far beyond the pocketbook. This abuse frequently affects seniors’ physical and emotional health.

According to a survey administered by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) in 2009, 31 responding states collectively received 357,000 reports of elder abuse, and 33 responding states collectively conducted 292,000 investigations. Based on projected population growth among older adults alone, elder abuse investigations in states studied may increase by 28 percent by 2020 and 50 percent by 2030.