![]() ![]() I cannot count the number of times I have heard frustrated statements from families about financial abuse toward their elders, and their experiences of getting brushed off by APS. When the partner confronted the bank and asked why no one had called her (she had Power of Attorney), and why no one at the bank (a mandated reporter of abuse) had reported the exploitation to APS, the answer was: “We didn’t want to embarrass her.” Mandated reporters do not always do their job of reporting, with various excuses. The bank where the account was located knew of this. ![]() In one case I am familiar with, a retired, high-profile, public figure had thousands of dollars disappearing from her bank account – an observation discovered by her partner. There are no discernible consequences when they don’t report. They hesitate or they simply fail to do what is required. What happens in real life? They wait too long. They include health care professionals, teachers, bank employees, financial institutions and more. A state-by-state list of mandated reporters is here, from the National Center on Elder Abuse. Some entities are mandated to report to APS when they suspect financial abuse. APS’ role varies from state to state and the attitude about financial abuse consumers experience from APS is similarly varied. The concept was to have an investigative body that could explore reports of elder abuse of various kinds, including financial exploitation. The origin of APS funding was the federal government. There appears to be no recognition by the feds of credible research done outside the government, even from national, well-established organizations. ![]() is $36.48 billion, more than 12 times what the federal government reports. It found that the amount stolen from elders each year in the U.S. A private entity, True Link, did a comprehensive study of financial elder abuse. The federal government puts the figure at $2.9 billion. I’d guess there are many more cases like hers that contribute to the statistic of how much is stolen from elders each year in the U.S. She said, “I don’t want my son prosecuted.” This is an example of a willing victim, one the Justice Department will never meet. I looked her in the eye and gently explained that what her son did - and was still planning to do - was abuse, and that it is against the law. He had taken money from her bank account with the Power of Attorney he had, and he wanted to get her home next. Sometimes, elders are too ashamed that they were taken advantage of by a family member or trusted others to be able to bring themselves to report the crime.Īs another real-life example, a 93-year-old woman connected to me for advice by her other family. Since most cases are not reported at all, this leaves many unaddressed victims with their abusers getting away with their actions. Law enforcement depends on reports of abuse to determine what, if any, action to take. One study estimated only 1 in 24 cases of abuse are reported to authorities. Some estimates range as high as 5 million elders who are abused each year. According to the National Center on Aging, approximately one in 10 Americans ages 60 and older have experienced some form of elder abuse. One issue the Justice Department’s expanded efforts to combat financial abuse does not address is that most cases of abuse are not reported. The problem with reporting financial abuse Not an iota of it will come to the attention of the DOJ’s Transnational Elder Fraud Strike Force. This sort of abuse is all too common in our experience. Sometimes the abuser sells grandma’s house out from under her and puts her in a Medicaid-paid, low-quality nursing home when she has no money left. Sometimes the family member, whom grandma trusted, then disappears - leaving grandma without any money. The family member gets grandma to sign a Durable Power of Attorney, and then proceeds to clean out grandma’s savings and checking accounts. Another example is an unscrupulous family member who moves in with grandma, who is frail and dependent on the family for care. ![]()
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