Blumenthal: Elder Abuse A “Scourge” And Must Be Stopped

(Washington, DC) – Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) today laid out necessary actions to help prevent senior abuse, including facilitating greater collaboration and training for law enforcement officers and conducting criminal background checks on potential caretakers. Blumenthal made the case for these important steps during a hearing on elder abuse, neglect, and financial exploitation conducted by the Senate Special Committee on Aging. Blumenthal heard testimony from actor and advocate Mickey Rooney and experts Kay Brown, Kathleen Quinn, Mark Lachs, Bonnie Barndl and Marie-Therese Connolly.

At the hearing, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released an investigative report detailing the devastating scope of elder abuse across the United States. The most recent incidence study found that 14.1% of non-institutionalized older adults were victims of physical, psychological or sexual abuse, neglect, or financial exploitation in the past year.  However, the GAO concluded that this number vastly underestimates the actual rate of senior abuse. Recently, Cornell University indicated that for every one reported case of elder abuse, 23 cases go unreported. 

“The fraud and abuse perpetrated on seniors is a scourge in Connecticut and across the country. It is absolutely unconscionable, inexcusable, and is totally intolerable,” said Blumenthal. “While I am not new to the fight for fair treatment of senior Americans, I am determined to use my new role on the Senate Aging Committee to continue working to end these outrageous acts and help bring security and peace of mind to our seniors.”

As Attorney General in Connecticut, Blumenthal successfully pushed for legislation that requires home health aides to submit to background checks in order to prevent known offenders from targeting additional seniors. According to the Connecticut Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Connecticut has the highest rate of reported elder abuse cases in the country at almost three times the national median. In 2010, as a part of the Affordable Care Act, Connecticut was awarded funds to create a comprehensive, streamlined system for conducting background checks on those who seek to work with vulnerable seniors in any long-term care setting.

“While we have made great strides in the last year to provide resources for states to ensure justice for our senior citizens, we must address the desperate need for increased cooperation at the federal, state, and local level to find, prevent and prosecute those who exploit seniors, and make certain that those individuals can never do so again,” said Blumenthal.

Following the hearing, Blumenthal signed on as an original co-sponsor to two pieces of key legislation introduced by Chairman of the Aging Committee Herb Kohl (D-WI) that will address the issue of elder abuse.

• The Elder Abuse Victims Act creates a dedicated office within the Department of Justice charged with combating elder abuse and streamlines the grant process so that states can respond quickly to cases of elder abuse and exploitation.

• The End Abuse in Later Life Act of 2011 enhances direct services for older victims of domestic violence, increases resources for law enforcement training, authorizes research on this issue, and supports collaborative community responses to victims of elder abuse.

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