Congress should expand upon the Elder Justice Act by adding a section (Section 2407) that details increased measures to prevent financial elder abuse. Our nation’s elders hold 70 percent of the country’s wealth, according to the National Committee for the Prevention of Elder Abuse, and are often dependent on others to complete their activities of daily living or their instrumental activities of daily living. This puts elders at risk of becoming victims of financial abuse. According to the National Center on Aging, financial exploitation of elders was self-reported in 41 out of 1,000 older adults surveyed. In order to counteract this exploitation from occurring, the Elder Justice Act should enforce harsher punishments for those convicted of financial elder abuse, specifically higher fines.
This is historical material “frozen in time”. The website is no longer updated and links to external websites and some internal pages may not work.
