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| Elder Justice Act |
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Elder Justice Act (S: 2010) - Amends the Social Security Act to add a new title XXII (Elder Justice) to establish:
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within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) an Office of Elder Justice (OEJ);
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within the Office of the Secretary the Elder Justice Coordinating Council to make recommendations to the Secretary and the Attorney General for the coordination of activities of Heath and Human Services, the Department of Justice and other relevant federal, state, local and private agencies and entities, relating to elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation and other crimes against elders; and
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the Advisory Board on Elder Abuse, Neglect, and Exploitation
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The Elder Justice Act provides for uniform collection, maintenance, and dissemination of national data relating to elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation, including an Elder Justice Resource Center in the Office of Elder Justice (OEJ).
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The Act funds the initiatives by authorizing the HHS Secretary to award grants for the following:
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prevention of elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation;
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five Centers of Excellence nationwide specializing in research, clinical practice, and training relating to elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation;
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six diverse communities to examine various types of elder shelters and test various models for establishing safe havens;
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non-profit organizations and faith-based organizations to establish or continue volunteer programs focusing on the issues of elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation, or providing related services; and
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various multidisciplinary elder justice activities.
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The Office of Elder Justice will be established within the Department of Justice. The Act authorizes the Attorney General to award: (1) victim advocacy grants; and (2) grants for specified support to local and state prosecutors handling elder justice-related cases.
Intended to protect the elderly in long term care and others considered "at risk", the Elder Justice Act provides for:
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reporting to law enforcement of crimes occurring in federally-funded long-term care facilities;
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revising the quality of long-term care; and
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increasing consumer information about long-term care, including an HHS long-term care consumer clearinghouse.
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The Act amends: (1) the Older Americans Act of 1965 with respect to the long-term care ombudsman program; (2) part A (General Provisions) of SSA title XI to establish an adult protective services grant program; (3) SSA titles XVIII (Medicare) and XIX (Medicaid) to assure safety of residents when nursing facilities close; and (4) part E (Miscellaneous) to apply skilled nursing facility preventive abuse requirements to long-term care facilities and providers.
There have been other attempts to pass "The Elder Justice Act" in Congress but those efforts stalled.
In introducing The Elder Justice Act (S. 2010) to Congress, Sen. Hatch stated, "Few pressing social issues have been as systematically ignored as elder abuse. In fact, 25 years of congressional hearings on the devastating effects of elder abuse have found this problem to be a 'disgrace' and a 'burgeoning national scandal.' Yet, to date, no federal legislation has been enacted to address elder abuse in a comprehensive manner."
An estimated 500,000 to 5 million seniors in our country are abused, neglected, or exploited according to estimated from various agencies and government statistics. Sadly, most cases of elder abuse go unreported. It is not even possible to accurately estimate the actual number of seniors affected.
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| Click here to view the complete text of the Elder Justice Act |
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