Chicago Nursing Home Abuse Attorney Blog

How widespread is senior abuse? The National Institute of Justice, reported in May that about 11 percent of people ages 60 and older suffer from some kind of abuse every year. That's more than one in ten. The biggest category that people contacted by NIJ said they suffered in the last year was emotional abuse (5.1 percent), with 1.6 percent suffering physical mistreatment. Financial exploitation by a family member was reported by 5.2 percent of those contacted. Financial exploitation of seniors reportedly costs more than $2½ billion a year.

And the consequences? The chances of dying go up. Other studies say elderly victims of abuse, neglect and exploitation have twice the risk of dying of those who aren't victims.

There are many stories that point out the extent of the problem: cases of home aides giving lethal doses of drugs and of people using positions of trust to permanently "borrow" money from seniors,

All of this would seem to make enhancing the rights of the elderly an obvious choice for legislators - particularly since the number of people over 55 is the most rapidly growing demographic and seniors vote in larger numbers than other age groups.

But there are opponents to the legislation. They talk about skyrocketing federal spending, state's rights and creating more government bureaucracy. Some question provisions designed to check the backgrounds of people hired to be involved with older citizens, since most abusers are known to their victims.

Backers of the Senate's Elder Justice Act and similar House proposals are now linking the cause to healthcare reform. They say this makes sense because elder abuse increases healthcare costs and financial exploitation leaves many victims to rely on public aid. Prevention would therefore be good policy, saving money in the long run.

"This is prevention, which is a healthcare issue," Robert Blancato, who heads the Elder Justice Coalition, an umbrella group for more than 500 groups that support the legislation, told Kaiser. Coalition members include AARP, the American Bar Association and industry groups representing nursing homes and long-term providers.

And why should the federal government get involved? Because studies show state and local licensing agencies. long-term-care ombudsmen and adult protective service workers don't have the resources to handle the problems.

Researchers at Texas A&M University, in a report to the U.S. Justice Department, concluded that "the universal lack of resources, the enormous variation across jurisdictions and the low priority given to elder abuse and neglect make it difficult to see how significant progress can be made without federal standards and financial support."

The current healthcare bills would require states to conduct comprehensive screening of people working with the elderly. This includes those doing home-based care, an group which almost one-quarter of the states don't regulate at all. Additional states only do background checks on medical workers. The bills would also set criteria for hiring - and firing - persons who have committed or commit violent crimes, including an appeals process.

Michael Kosner, President
The Kosner Firm Chtd.

We hear about child abuse and wife beating more than we hear about senior abuse. They're all ugly concepts, but we are likely less aware of the elderly being mistreated since what we hear is generally limited to nursing home cases. This is a limitation that is being relaxed as both houses of Congress debate elder justice provisions in connection with health care reform.

Nursing homes provide the public face since, as Marsha Greenfield of the American Association of Homes & Services for the Aging recently said in an article written by Kaiser Health News, seniors are a more invisible population.

"Adult abuse is a lot harder (than abuse of other vulnerable populations) to get your arms around," she told Kaiser, an independent health news service. She added that this is because, while there are a growing number in community and group living arrangements, so many of the elderly are in their own homes.

The article added that other populations have become more visible as celebrities speak out on their problems. It noted that Nicole Kidman recently spoke at a congressional hearing on violence against women and that stars of "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" appeared at a Washington rally about child abuse.

Meanwhile, a coalition of elder abuse groups could only muster ordinary seniors telling their painful stories of physical and emotional abuse and financial exploitation. It's too bad that fewer people - and publications - take time to listen when a celebrity isn't speaking.

The lack of support that comes with a lack of spotlight may be changing as federal lawmakers consider establishing federal law to support the fight against elder abuse.

The House's healthcare bill would provide for national background checks for people who care for the elderly. This would override a mixture of state laws that have let known offenders end up in positions of trust where they can do additional harm.

The Senate is considering a broader Elder Justice Act that would provide federal dollars to identify and investigate elder abuse locally, require long-term care providers to report possible crimes to federal authorities and create new oversight within the Department of Health and Human Services. These provisions have been approved by the Senate Finance Committee and are part of health legislation headed for floor debate.

These provisions would help, but only up to a point since studies show up to 90 percent of elder abuse cases involve family or trusted advisors and happen in private homes. And this will get harder to control as more elderly people are at home or in community and group living arrangements without the kinds of oversight mechanisms available when, for example, child abuse is suspected. There, professionals (teachers, doctors, etc.) outside the home are required to report suspected abuse to authorities.

We'll see how the legislation develops. After all, money, as with all things, remains an issue. The Senate Act has an estimated cost of $757 million over four years. Even though this is negligible compared to the cost of healthcare reform as a whole, and despite broad support that includes more than 500 advocacy groups, this could mean passage problems.

For more information on the legislation, click here or here.

Michael Kosner, President
The Kosner Firm Chtd.