What Mental Health Practitioners Need to Know about the Elder Justice Act

Mental Health Practitioners should take note of two realities about elder abuse: a large majority of elder abuse is perpetrated by family members, and the average victim of elder abuse is an older women between 75 and 80 who is living alone, and as a result of isolation and loneliness can entrust the wrong individuals with responsibility for their finances or care. When that trust is violated, elder abuse occurs.

The landmark Elder Justice Act of 2010 (EJA, an amendment to the Affordable Care Act) provides America an opportunity to engage the federal government’s resources and resourcefulness in the fight against elder abuse, neglect and exploitation. The law’s premise is that only a coordinated and comprehensive federal commitment, working with existing state and local entities, will allow us to promote elder justice by reducing elder abuse.

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