Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions

Floor Speech

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Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I rise to introduce the Promoting Alzheimer's Awareness to Prevent Elder Abuse Act. I am pleased to be joined by my colleagues, Senators Menendez and Grassley, in sponsoring this legislation that seeks to help combat elder abuse perpetrated against those living with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias.

An estimated 5.8 million Americans aged 65 and older currently live with Alzheimer's disease. This disease takes a tremendous personal and economic toll on individuals and their families, and the COVID-19 crisis has made many of the challenges they face even more difficult.

People living with Alzheimer's and related dementias make up a large proportion of all older Americans who receive adult day services and nursing home care, making them among those most vulnerable to COVID-19. Many of the public health and safety measures put in place to control the spread of COVID-19, including social distancing, also may contribute to social isolation, which is one of the greatest risk factors for elder abuse. This crisis has also given rise to a number of COVID-19-related scams seeking to financially exploit Americans of all ages, including seniors.

Individuals with Alzheimer's are at greater risk for elder abuse. According to the National Center on Elder Abuse, approximately one in ten Americans aged 60 and older have experienced elder abuse. For people with Alzheimer's and related dementias, the prevalence is much higher, with some estimates putting it at just over 50 percent.

This abuse can take a number of forms. In 2015, the Aging Committee heard from Philip Marshall, the grandson of philanthropist Brooke Astor, who testified that his father neglected his mother's health and safety and mismanaged her assets while she suffered from Alzheimer's disease.

More recently, a constituent called the Aging Committee Fraud Hotline after she discovered a contracting scam targeting her aunt and uncle. These scammers repeatedly charged her aunt and uncle, who both have dementia, for the same driveway sealing services and other handyman tasks, stealing $34,000 of their hard-earned savings.

Identifying, investigating, and prosecuting elder abuse cases often involve several challenges. Victims may not be able to report the abuse they are experiencing, and prosecutors may need to prove the case without the victim's testimony. When elder abuse victims or witnesses have Alzheimer's or related dementia, these challenges can be exacerbated.

Specialized knowledge and training can help address the issues of abuse and fraud. The Elder Abuse Prevention and Prosecution Act, which became law in 2017, required the Department of Justice to develop training materials to help criminal justice, social services, and health care personnel investigate elder abuse cases and assess, respond to, and interact with the victims and witnesses in these cases. The legislation I am introducing today would build on this law by requiring the Department to ensure that these elder abuse training materials incorporate best practices for responding to elder abuse victims and witnesses who have Alzheimer's or other related dementias.

This legislation would also require the Department to consult with federal, state, and local partners and stakeholders in developing its elder justice training materials and to update these training materials to reflect new best practices.

As Chairman of the Senate Aging Committee, one of my top priorities is protecting seniors against abuse. The Promoting Alzheimer's Awareness to Prevent Elder Abuse Act would help to ensure that the frontline professionals who are leading the charge against elder abuse have the training needed to respond to cases where the victim or a witness has Alzheimer's disease or other forms of dementia. I urge my colleagues to support this bill.

Thank you, Mr. President.

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