FINANCIAL ABUSE OF THE ELDERLY ON THE RISE

Financial abuse of the elderly is on the rise. In 1986, there were 117,000 cases of financial abuse reported to state adult protective service (APS) programs. In 2000, the number of reported cases totaled 470,709. Worse yet, it is believed that four to five times as many cases of abuse go unreported.

Of those that are reported, we have learned the following:

• People age eighty and older are abused at a rate two to three times higher than their percentage of the general population;
• The female elderly are abused more often than male elders, and more than half of the elders who are abused are physically unable to care for themselves;
• In nine out of ten cases of domestic elder abuse, the perpetrator of the abuse is a family member – most often the abuser is an adult child.

And the likelihood that someone will be the victim of financial abuse increases as the person ages. Almost half of those individuals who were the victim of reported financial abuse were age eighty or older, with another 29% between the ages of seventy-five and seventy-nine. Less than 4% were between the ages of sixty and sixty-four.

One the other hand, the perpetrators of financial abuse are most often younger. In approximately 45% of the reported cases of abuse, the perpetrator was age forty or younger. Over 39% were between the ages of forty-one and fifty-nine.

And home is where the abuse is. In over 60% of the cases, the perpetrator was the adult child of the elder.

So, if you’re depression has compelled you to turn the page by now, here are some indicators of financial abuse that may help you spot, and stop, financial abuse before it goes too far. The following characteristics are risk factors for financial abuse of the elderly:

• The abuser’s dependency on the elderly individual;
• The elderly individual’s dependency on the abuser;
• The elderly individual is frail, disabled, or impaired;
• The elderly individual is socially isolated;
• Substance abuse or mental pathology of either the elder or the abuser.

Of course, many of these characteristics are found in relationships were there is no abuse. A child may live with his or her frail and disabled elderly parent, or vice versa, and there may be no abuse of any nature occurring.

In fact, almost every week I meet with a family that has one or more of these characteristics. But the characteristics in combination with sudden behavior shifts may point to financial abuse.

For instance, has the elder recently changed his/her power of attorney? Has there been erratic or unusual transactions occurring in the elder’s financial accounts? Has there been suspicious credit card activity? Is the elder lacking in basic necessities such as food or clothing?

Protecting an elderly person from abuse means walking a fine line between prying and concern. Many elderly individuals are more than capable of handling their own affairs and most family members are genuinely concerned for their elderly family members.

Nevertheless, we should be mindful of the fact that abuse does occur and is a growing problem. Some concern can go a long way to protect an elderly individual that you may know.