Elder Justice Act
On May 23, I attended a conference in Dallas entitled “Steps to Protect: Financial Exploitation and the Elderly”. The keynote speaker was Paul Greenwood, ESQ, head of the Elder Abuse Prosecution Unit in San Diego.
We, as members of the National Elder Abuse Coalition, are trying to get the Elder Justice Act passed by Congress. (S.2010 & H.R. 4993).
Mr. Greenwood voiced several concerns.
“We need a combined law enforcement and public health approach to study, detect, treat, PROSECUTE and, most importantly, prevent elder abuse, neglect and exploitation….
The problem of elder abuse, neglect & exploitation has long been invisible and presents among the grave issues facing millions of American families….Thousands of cases of elder abuse go unaddressed each day…
Our Elder Justice bill tackles these crimes, and provides seniors the protections they need to live safely and securely.”
He also included important statistics about these issues:
Federal government spends $520 Million on programs combating violence against women.
Federal government spends $6.7 Billion on child abuse prevention efforts.
Federal government spends $153.5 Million on programs addressing issues of elder abuse, neglect & exploitation.
Between 1950 & 2000, the total population increased by 87%
Age 65+ - by 188%
Age 85+ - by 635%
By 2030- 65+ will triple to over 70 million
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