U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., on Wednesday said it was time for the federal government to get serious about elder abuse.
Schumer said the swift passage of the Elder Justice Act, which is pending before the Senate's finance committee, would be the first piece of federal legislation to directly deal with elder abuse.
Schumer said that in 2007, about 8,693 cases of elder abuse were reported in New York, with 120 cases reported in Cayuga County, but a study from the Department of Health and Human Services Administration on Aging shows that more than 80 percent of elder abuse goes unreported, which could raise the number in Cayuga County to nearly 600 cases.
“It's time to shine light on a serious problem that for too long has hidden in the shadows,” Schumer said during a telephone conference with reporters, defining the problem as the mental, physical, financial and emotional abuse and exploitation of elderly people.
With an aging baby boomer population that will soon swell the ranks of the elderly, Schumer said an increase in abuse could be expected and federal legislation would be needed to standardize and assist state laws and health care programs responsible for monitoring abuse.
Mark Miller, the New York state long-term care ombudsman with the New York State Office for the Aging, said the additional funding the Elder Justice Act provides would help improve the training for people who are accountable for monitoring abuse. The Elder Justice Act would allocate around $163 million for funding programs and conducting research.
“It has a huge amount of money in it,” Miller said. “It is going to provide us with some additional resources to better investigate abuse in facilities.”
Other aspects of the act would combine law enforcement agencies and health care services in studying, detecting, treating, prosecuting and preventing abuse. An Elder Research Center would also be created to centralize research, collect data to help highlight health care facilities that have a history of abuse and to raise public and professional awareness about the issue.
When looking at national health care facility statistics, Miller said the total number of abuse complaints had increased but the percentage of abuse complaints compared to other types of complaints had decreased.
“Maybe we are doing a better job,” Miller said. “Or possibly we are not recognizing more subtle abuse. Training would help people in the field recognize different types of abuse and investigate those cases better.”
With 50 states having 50 different ways of dealing with elder abuse, there is no consistent way to deal with problems. The goal of the Elder Justice Act, Schumer said, is not to replace a state's system, but to augment it. A national program would foster better education, better abuse detection and a consistent response when abuse is found.
New York has two laws that deal with abuse. Kathy's Law increases the penalties for caregivers who are guilty of injuring incompetent or physically disabled adults who are 60-years-old or older and the Family Protection and Domestic Violence Intervention Act of 1994 which requires medical staff to give the Victim's Rights Notice to anyone who has been abused or suspected of being abused by domestic violence.
But Schumer believes more needs to be done. When child and spousal abuse were brought to the national spotlight a lot was done to deal with those issues, and the same could be done with elder abuse, Schumer said, and that's what the act is for.
“We appreciate the support of Sen. Schumer keeping (elder abuse) at the forefront.” Miller said. “Ultimately it will make a difference.”
Staff writer Nate Robson can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 248 or nathan.robson@lee.net
Schumer said that in 2007, about 8,693 cases of elder abuse were reported in New York, with 120 cases reported in Cayuga County, but a study from the Department of Health and Human Services Administration on Aging shows that more than 80 percent of elder abuse goes unreported, which could raise the number in Cayuga County to nearly 600 cases.
“It's time to shine light on a serious problem that for too long has hidden in the shadows,” Schumer said during a telephone conference with reporters, defining the problem as the mental, physical, financial and emotional abuse and exploitation of elderly people.
With an aging baby boomer population that will soon swell the ranks of the elderly, Schumer said an increase in abuse could be expected and federal legislation would be needed to standardize and assist state laws and health care programs responsible for monitoring abuse.
Mark Miller, the New York state long-term care ombudsman with the New York State Office for the Aging, said the additional funding the Elder Justice Act provides would help improve the training for people who are accountable for monitoring abuse. The Elder Justice Act would allocate around $163 million for funding programs and conducting research.
“It has a huge amount of money in it,” Miller said. “It is going to provide us with some additional resources to better investigate abuse in facilities.”
Other aspects of the act would combine law enforcement agencies and health care services in studying, detecting, treating, prosecuting and preventing abuse. An Elder Research Center would also be created to centralize research, collect data to help highlight health care facilities that have a history of abuse and to raise public and professional awareness about the issue.
When looking at national health care facility statistics, Miller said the total number of abuse complaints had increased but the percentage of abuse complaints compared to other types of complaints had decreased.
“Maybe we are doing a better job,” Miller said. “Or possibly we are not recognizing more subtle abuse. Training would help people in the field recognize different types of abuse and investigate those cases better.”
With 50 states having 50 different ways of dealing with elder abuse, there is no consistent way to deal with problems. The goal of the Elder Justice Act, Schumer said, is not to replace a state's system, but to augment it. A national program would foster better education, better abuse detection and a consistent response when abuse is found.
New York has two laws that deal with abuse. Kathy's Law increases the penalties for caregivers who are guilty of injuring incompetent or physically disabled adults who are 60-years-old or older and the Family Protection and Domestic Violence Intervention Act of 1994 which requires medical staff to give the Victim's Rights Notice to anyone who has been abused or suspected of being abused by domestic violence.
But Schumer believes more needs to be done. When child and spousal abuse were brought to the national spotlight a lot was done to deal with those issues, and the same could be done with elder abuse, Schumer said, and that's what the act is for.
“We appreciate the support of Sen. Schumer keeping (elder abuse) at the forefront.” Miller said. “Ultimately it will make a difference.”
Staff writer Nate Robson can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 248 or nathan.robson@lee.net
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