Dear Ray,
Please consider posting the forwarded story attached. It is regarding the story posted earlier on your website. (Cousins accused of abusing two family elders)
Please permit me to publicly thank Rep. Kris Crawford and the Maple Park Neighborhood Association of Florence SC for inspiration and work for their bill "Jerry's Law".(Bill to protect senior citizens expected to become law".
My five siblings in SC (seniors) and myself now know we are no longer alone in the inch by inch struggle beginning over four years ago and since my brothers death 2 1/2 years ago.
Perhaps through efforts such as "Jerry's Law", there will be some closure for my family and more so, for all the citizens in SC and throughout America that need help regarding Adult Abuse.
Thank You, Headline: Bill to protect senior citizens expected to become lawURL: http://www.scnow.com/midatlantic/scp/news.apx.-content-articles-FMN-2008-01-30-0008.html
Perhaps with awareness and better laws, there will be some justice for my brother and closure for my family as well. Thank you for all your efforts in bringing help to the victims and families of these inhumane acts.
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Dear Malone
Thank You very much for E mailing me the story , I love to print good news and only wish there was more of it to go around, Beginning January 1,2007 financial institutions throughout California will now have a responsibility to report suspected financial abuse of elders (65 years or older) or dependent adults (18-64 years old with mental, physical or developmental disabilities) and we are seeing arrests and elders being protected because of these safeguards.
Kudos to Senators in S.C. for having the gall to confront this issue head on and show the Nation that it cares about its elders. More and more senators in more states are waking up to the fact that elder protection laws are archaic, and leave elders wide open to abuse end exploitation.
I can certainly hope that in our great state of Florida the cases of elder abuse that we have written about and some so thoroughly documented will be enough to give our lawmakers and senators reason to take a hard look at our laws and will do more to protect people who are victims of elder abuse .
South Carolina,USA Written By Kelly Gillespie submitted by Malone
A new bill that stems from the death of a Florence senior citizen has been introduced to the S.C. House of Representatives to help protect the elderly.
“It’s one of those things — it was a bad thing that brought it about, and it doesn’t say something good about our society, really, that we have to do this at all,” Crawford said. “I’m always very sad to file these bills that are inspired by horrible events.”
.....there are some loopholes that allow offenders who prey on the old and the young to avoid the stiffest penalties. Most of the gaps that permit this have been closed in matters relating to violent crimes against children, but have not been addressed with crimes involving people of advanced age.
“It’s a reasonable step to take, so I think we have a good chance of getting it to the governor’s desk this year,” Crawford said.Gov. Mark Sanford said he thinks the bill has a good chance of becoming law this year.
“This idea of saying, wait a minute, if you prey on people who are particularly vulnerable in our society, there’s going to be a more significant consequence ...
Crawford said Jerry’s Law is expected to have hearings within the next 30 days, and it could pass out of the House floor in 90 days.Darlington Police Department officers, who are investigating a case of elder abuse, also said they support Jerry’s Law.
Abridged and Edited for E.A. =>>
Valley, California, USA By Leslie Griffy
A urologist who performed a painful cancer treatment on a patient who didn't have the disease has pleaded guilty to felony charges of elder abuse and insurance fraud.
Ali Moayed, 41, of Monte Sereno is facing up to one year in jail under a plea agreement with Santa Clara County prosecutors. Moayed - who entered the guilty plea Friday - will be formally sentenced March 7. He has already surrendered his medical license.
Moayed created fake lab reports indicating that three of his patients suffered from prostate cancer, which they didn't have, according to court documents.
Initially, he pleaded not guilty and faced seven years in prison. He changed his plea Friday, when prosecutors dismissed three other felony charges. Moayed will be sentenced in March and is expected to serve up to one year in jail and 100 hours of community service, while paying $65,000 in restitution costs. He can no longer practice medicine in California.(How many states does that leaves ?)
About 218,000 American men are diagnosed with prostate cancer every year.
Contact Leslie Griffy at lgriffy@mercurynews.com or (408) 920-5945.
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It just breaks my heart that this man that performed fake prostate operation on elders will have to serve one year in jail, doesn't it you, maybe he can get out early on good behavior. Wonder how many are there dentists, etc that don't get caught?
How about the emotional upheaval he caused this people and their families by telling them they had cancer! and all he gets is one year in jail,you get more jail time for drug possession than for elder abuse, that's the message that we are sending out, the rewards of elder abuse are great, you can make a fortune, the risk, almost non existent.
Long Beach,California,USA. Police said Rodriguez was hired in 2007 to be 91-year-old's caretaker. At the time of her arrest, police said Rodriguez had attempted to withdraw $5,000 from her victim's bank account at a Bixby Knolls branch of a Wells Fargo bank.
After her Jan. 8 arrest, Long Beach Police Department's Adult Protective Services worked with Accent Care Service to provide meal service for the alleged victim. The elder care group assigned Orozco, a client care coordinator, to the 91-year-old.
He was arrested Jan. 22 when City National Bank employees informed officers of Orozco's alleged attempt to withdraw $100,000 from the woman's bank account.
According to a police statement, Orozco allegedly drove to five banks with the victim. He allegedly told bank employees at each bank to close the 91-year-old's accounts and to give him the money.
Forgery and Fraud Detail detectives arrested Orozco on suspicion of financial elder abuse and an outstanding traffic warrant. Anyone with information is urged to call Detective Stacey Holdredge or Police Specialist Dave Lanier at (562)570-7330.
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We heard that some State Parole System parole officers are telling convicts that home care giving is a promising field for gainful employment. Parolees are able to get the work without a lot of background checking .
Elder abusers in California are very brazen and don't even try to dissimulate their intentions, in Florida Elder Financial abusers are a little more sophisticated, they get a Power of Attoney first! then they can withdraw the money through the mail ! and even if they get caught it could in all likelihood be considered a civil matter.
Kudos for new California law that required the Bank tellers to call the cops.
The Social Security Administration (SSA) is warning benefit recipients that they are currently the targets of a number of scams surfacing throughout the United States.
Jo Anne Barnhart, Commissioner of Social Security and Patrick O’Carroll, Jr., Acting Inspector General of Social Security reported that SSA had received numerous reports about telephone calls or visits from people alleging to be Social Security employees. In each case, the person attempted to obtain personal information, such as a Social Security or bank account number, from the Social Security recipient.
"I find it very troubling that our most vulnerable citizens are being targeted by these unscrupulous people,” Commissioner Barnhart stated. "I caution everyone to be extremely careful about releasing personal information."
The perpetrators, who identify themselves as Social Security employees, have used a variety of tactics to obtain personal information. In one instance, the caller said the Agency was experiencing a power outage and needed to verify the person’s information. In another, the caller posed as an employee who needed to verify the recipient’s direct deposit information.
Acting Inspector General O’Carroll recommends people always take precautions when giving out personal information. “You should never provide your Social Security number or other personal information over the telephone unless you initiated the contact, or are confident of the person to whom you are speaking,” O’Carroll said. "If in doubt, do not release information without first verifying the validity of the call." Barnhart and O’Carroll recommend contacting the local Social Security office or Social Security’s toll-free number at 1-800-772-1213 to verify the legitimacy of the call. (If you are deaf or hard of hearing, call Social Security's TTY number at 1-800-325-0778.)
Acting Inspector General O’Carroll notes that the Office of Inspector General (OIG) is working closely with the Agency to investigate all reports of suspicious activity. To report suspicious activity, please call the OIG Hotline at 1-800-269-0271. (If you are deaf or hard of hearing, call the OIG TTY number at 1-866-501-2101.) A Public Fraud Reporting form is also available online at OIG’s Website:=>>
Tell Congress to have a heart: Don't cut access to doctors for America's most vulnerable!
In late 2007, thousands of people like you helped persuade Congress to put off their plan to slash payments to Medicare doctors for six months.
Now that Congress is back in session, we need to make sure these cuts never happen at all! >>
On July 1, a steep Medicare doctor payment cut is scheduled to go into effect.
If this plan goes through, Medicare patients' access to care will be bleak. Consider the following:
About a quarter of Medicare patients looking for a new primary care physician already have problems finding one.*
By 2020,the government predicts a shortage of 85,000 doctors.
The first wave of baby boomers are becoming eligible for Medicare in only three short years.
Ask Congress to have a heart. Make sure Medicare cuts don't go through this year - or ever >>
We need your voice more than ever to protect quality healthcare for those who need it most: families, the elderly and infants. Thank you for speaking up on their behalf today!
Truly,Robyn E. Care2 and ThePetitionSite Team
Darlington.- South Carolina USA . initial report by By Jamie Rogers E-mail
EMS personnel who were contacted , responded to the home and found an 84-year-old woman and a 62-year-old woman in serious condition, Watson said.Both were taken to a local hospital where the 62-year-old woman’s condition is so critical that hospital staff are not expecting her to live, Watson said. It appeared that the 62-year-old had not eaten in more than 30 days, according to WBTW News13 reports.
Full story =>>
as published in This is Money.Com
The hidden misery of thousands of elderly and vulnerable consumers who repeatedly fall victim to scams was highlighted today by the Office of Fair Trading.
As it launched the 2008 Scams Awareness Month, the OFT said protecting the elderly from ruthless operators was one of the main themes of this year's campaign.
Every year an estimated 3million UK consumers fall victim to scams sent by post, email, text, the phone and internet.
Bogus lotteries, deceptive prize draws and sweepstakes, fake psychics and 'miracle' health cures cost the public more than £3billion a year.
Anyone can fall for a scam but the elderly are often hit hardest research shows older victims are likely to lose nearly twice as much per scam as others. Victims are often socially isolated, over-trusting or afflicted by illnesses such as dementia and can be repeatedly targeted by the scammers. Many lose their life savings and suffer depression and ill health as a result.
'Scammers use sophisticated psychological techniques to target people who are often the most vulnerable in society. Those who fall for these scams not only lose their savings, but often live in fear, suffering debt and depression and are too afraid to tell anyone of their plight. We want to ask family members, carers and others to help spot the warning signs before it is too late.'
'Scammers operate through a ruthless circle of psychological and financial abuse. They gain people's trust and exploit fears, insecurities and pain to steal as much money as they can from those who can least afford it.
Abridged and edited for E.A.=>>
By Marie-Therese Connolly at the Washington Post
As though declining health, impending mortality and other challenges weren't hard enough, too often old age is also plagued by abuse, neglect and exploitation.
Science has extended our lives dramatically: In 1900, Americans' average life expectancy was 47. By 2000, it was 77, and it's still rising. But our energy and resources have been disproportionately focused on living longer rather than living better -- a phenomenon called " the longevity paradox."
Consider the travails of the late socialite and philanthropist Brooke Astor. Even her fortune couldn't protect her. Modern medicine helped her live to 105, but her friends and grandson assert that she languished with Alzheimer's on a reeking couch, subsisting on pureed peas and oatmeal because her son didn't pay for adequate care; the Manhattan district attorney has indicted him on charges of grand larceny for pilfering her assets.
Eight years of working on issues involving abuse of the elderly at the Department of Justice taught me that while Astor's life may have been uncommon, her alleged plight in old age was not. Estimates of the prevalence of elder abuse vary wildly, but by some reports there could be up to 5 million cases a year, with 84 percent going unreported. All other factors being equal, victims of even relatively minor mistreatment are three times more likely to die prematurely than those who are not victimized.
We are perhaps in greatest denial about elder sexual abuse. When the perpetrator is a son or grandson, these cases are met with disbelief.
Some facilities provide great care. But the news about staffing, the most critical factor in the quality of long-term care, is bleak:
Yet not a single federal employee works on elder abuse issues full-time. Ironically, the family violence field has largely ignored elder abuse, and most entities devoted to aging issues assign it low priority. This inattention is all the more baffling given the approaching tsunami of 77 million aging baby boomers, and given that the fastest-growing segment of the population, those 85 and older, are at greatest risk for mistreatment.
Which brings us to this question: How do we as individuals and as a nation measure the value of life in old age? And why have we not done more to protect and defend our most vulnerable elders?
We take solace in believing that we are not a nation that abandons our elders. But we have overestimated our civility. Because in the end, we subject many of our old people to a plight as bad as, if not worse than, the ice floe.
connollymt@gmail.com
Marie-Therese Connolly, a fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, is former coordinator of the Department of Justice's Elder Justice and Nursing Home Initiative.
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We owe it to AMERICA'S GREATEST GENERATION – OUR SENIOR CITIZENS to protect them from those who are determined to steal their assets and dignity.
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