LANSING – State Representative Woodrow Stanley (D-Flint) today took a stand against elder abuse in Michigan by voting to pass the first wave of a package of bills that will strengthen consumer protections for seniors and increase penalties for those who financially exploit them. The Elder Abuse Protection Plan is part of Stanley's ongoing effort to strengthen Michigan's faltering consumer protection laws. The lawmaker called for the Senate to pass the plan quickly.
"Though I'll never understand what drives somebody to exploit or abuse the person that they're supposed to take care of, the sad reality is that it happens all too often here in our state," Stanley said. "Our laws just aren't doing the job of protecting seniors. That's why the Elder Abuse Protection Plan is needed – it increases protections and sends a clear message that we are going to stand up for the men and women who cared and provided for us."
The plan that began moving today addresses elder abuse by:
- Increasing penalties for cheating or defrauding seniors, including establishing felony charges and banning abusers from inheriting from the estate of their victim.
- Empowering concerned citizens to file criminal complaints to stop and prevent abuse cases in nursing homes and elsewhere.
- Strengthening consumer protections by requiring financial institutions to do more to disclose the rights of seniors and create new safeguards against fraud.
- Creating the "Mozelle Alert" – an alert to notify the public in cases of missing endangered seniors, similar to the Amber Alert. The alert is named in honor of Estella Mozelle Pierce, a senior who died after wandering from her Southwest Detroit home.
Reports of elder abuse have increased 40 percent since 1998, according to the Michigan Department of Human Services. Michigan's Adult Protective Services received more than 16,300 reports of adult mistreatment in 2008. Based on estimates of how often abuse goes unreported, this suggests that more than 73,000 of Michigan's adults are abused every year, according to the National Center on Elder Abuse.
To report a suspected case of elder abuse, residents can call the state's 24-hour toll-free hotline at (800) 996-6228.
"Too often, seniors are the target of scammers or unscrupulous individuals who prey on them just to make a quick buck," Stanley said. "This cannot and should not be happening here in Michigan. I urge the Senate to move quickly on enacting these protections and join us in taking a stand for Michigan seniors."