article is based on work from the Women’s Institutefor Secure Retirement (WISER). Available atWISER’s website: www.wiserwomen.org.2 MetLife Mature Market Institute (MMI), 2009. BrokenTrust: Elders, Family and Finances. Downloadablefrom: www.maturemarketinstitute.com.3 According to CEASE, there are more than 15,000different types of financial annuity products available.CEASE is the national Coalition to End Elder FinancialAbuse. It is comprised of California Advocates forNursing Home Reform (CANHR), the <strong>National</strong> AdultProtective Services Association (NAPSA), and theWomen’s Institute for a Secure Retirement (WISER).4 Information about “senior seminars” was excerptedfrom CEASE testimony submitted to the SenateSpecial Committee on Aging, August 31, 20075 The section on lump-sum payouts is based on informationand suggestions from the SEC. Available at: www.sec.gov/investor/pubs/lump_sum_payouts.htm.6 Two options for more information on how to find afinancial planner: Check FINRA’s Selecting Your InvestmentProfessional at http://apps.finra.org/DataDirectory/1/prodesignations.aspx and the <strong>National</strong> Association ofPersonal Financial Advisors at http://www.napfa.org/.7 Excerpted from “Inside the Mind of the <strong>Older</strong>Investor” in The Intelligent Investor October,2007, by Jason Zweig. Available at: http://www.jasonzweig.com/uploads/11.07Aging.pdf.22
Elder Justice Legislative UpdateRobert Blancato, <strong>National</strong> CoordinatorElder Justice CoalitionProgress was made on <strong>elder</strong> justice in the 110 thCongress. The House passed the Elder Abuse VictimsAct of 2008, which would dedicate funds to enhancestate and local prosecutions of <strong>elder</strong> <strong>abuse</strong>. The billwent to the Senate, but they did not act. For the thirdtime the Senate Finance Committee passed the ElderJustice Act, which was sponsored by Senators Hatchand Lincoln. In addition, they passed the Patient Safetybill authored by Senator Kohl. Both of these bills werecleared for the Senate floor, but two Senators put holdson the bill, preventing it from passing.The 111 th Congress convened in January of 2009 witha new President, Barack Obama, who co-sponsored theElder Justice Act as a United States Senator from Illinois.The House has again passed the Elder Abuse VictimsAct, H.R. 448, authored by Representative Sestak. Inaddition, the House has also passed and sent to theSenate the Silver Alert bill to aid localities in findingmissing senior citizens.In late March, the Elder Justice Act was introducedas S. 795 again by Senators Hatch and Lincoln. Inaddition, Senator Kohl reintroduced his Patient SafetyAct as S. 631. Both bills await action in the SenateFinance Committee. Meanwhile on the House side, itsversion of the Elder Justice Act was introduced by Rep.Peter King as H.R. 2006 in mid-April.Overall prospects for final action on the Elder JusticeAct are promising due to the Obama Administration’sexpected support of the legislation. The non-partisan,574-member Elder Justice Coalition will be leadingadvocacy efforts and will focus on securing as many cosponsorsas possible and quickly holding hearings.The Elder Justice Act is the most comprehensive billever to commit federal resources to the fight against<strong>elder</strong> <strong>abuse</strong>, neglect and exploitation. It seeks to addressmany <strong>issue</strong>s in a single comprehensive act. The main<strong>issue</strong>s addressed are elevating <strong>elder</strong> justice <strong>issue</strong>s tothe level of national attention, improving quality,quantity and accessibility of information, developing" The Elder Justice Act is the mostcomprehensive bill ever to commitfederal resources to the fight against<strong>elder</strong> <strong>abuse</strong>, neglect and exploitation. "forensic capacity, providing victim assistance, increasingprosecution, implementing special programs to supportunderserved populations, developing model statelaws, increasing security, collaboration, and consumerinformation in long-term care, establishing evaluationsand accountability to determine what is working andwhat is not.Under this Act, States and Indian Tribes can applyfor grants to develop multidisciplinary approaches to<strong>elder</strong> <strong>abuse</strong>. There would be an Office of Elder AbusePrevention and Services created by the Secretary. Thisoffice would be responsible for developing policy,objectives, and priority in carrying out “<strong>elder</strong> justice”programs. These programs include <strong>abuse</strong> prevention,detection, treatment, intervention, response, trainingfor individuals involved in any of these stages andimprovement of the entire “<strong>elder</strong> justice” system.The Office of Elder Abuse would also be in charge ofcollecting data about <strong>elder</strong> <strong>abuse</strong> and collaboratingwith the Bureau of Justice Statistics in the Office ofJustice Programs at the Department of Justice about thedissemination of this data. Finally, the Office of ElderAbuse would be responsible for educating the citizenson the best practices and training regarding <strong>elder</strong> <strong>abuse</strong>by consulting the necessary experts. This office wouldalso be required to provide technical assistance to thestates.The Elder Justice Act provides improved definitions,amending some of the existing definitions in the <strong>Older</strong>Americans Act. Elder justice is defined as “efforts toprevent, detect, treat, intervene in, and prosecute casesof <strong>elder</strong> <strong>abuse</strong>, neglect, and exploitation, and to protect<strong>elder</strong>s with diminished capacity while maximizing theirautonomy; and from an individual perspective, therecognition of an <strong>elder</strong>’s rights, including the right to befree from <strong>abuse</strong>, neglect and exploitation.”The section on grants states that the AssistantSecretary on Aging can award grants to strengthen LTC23
Change language