With the Affordable Care Act being upheld by the Supreme Court, there will be many breathing a sigh of relief. Among those who may be able to exhale are individuals who are confronted with Elder Abuse.
Elder Abuse is underreported, under-recognized, and under-prosecuted. But luckily there is a growing awareness of the problem and help will soon be at hand in the form of a coordinated federal effort that was announced on Elder Abuse Awareness Day at a White House forum on elder abuse and financial exploitation.
The federal government is putting its money where its mouth is with a $5.5 million grant to address the devastating and increasing problem of elder financial abuse under the Affordable Care Act.
According to a study by the Investor Protection Trust, Elder Abuse is getting worse. The vast majority experts dealing with investment fraud/financial exploitation of American senior citizens agree that the problem of scams targeting the elderly is on the rise.
Hazel Heckers is one of those taking the lead in bringing issues of elder abuse to the forefront of crime prevention. She is the Victim Advocate for the Colorado Bureau of Investigation and she has advised on the state’s law enforcement protocols for responding to cases of caregiver abuse.
Hazel was the host of last week’s very popular CSA webinar “The Story You Won’t See on Law & Order: Why Elders Are Targets for Scams and Financial Abuse”. CSAs can view the webinar in the Member Resources section of the CSA website. Hazel also provided information sheets which she will customize for CSAs.
But we want to hear from you. Have you had experiences of working with victims of abuse? Tell us what has made a difference in your work.
Blog posting provided by Society of Certified Senior Advisors
http://www.csa.us/
