World Elder Abuse Awareness Day

Today is World Elder Abuse Awareness Day!

Please pass along our petition to pass the Elder Justice Act to 5 friends who have not yet signed.

Together, we can make a difference!

Citi Sponsors Free Workshop for Elders

San Francisco, CA – Elder Financial Protection Network partners with Citi on “Be Wise: Avoid Scams, Fraud and Identity Theft,” a free community education workshop for elders to learn how to protect themselves from becoming victims of financial exploitation, on Thursday, June 11, 2009 from 11 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. at the West Bay Conference Center in San Francisco, California. The Keynote Address will be delivered by Paul Henderson, Chief of Administration for the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office. The workshop will feature speaker presentations by Helen Karr of the Office of San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris, who will discuss elder financial abuse and local resources, Victoria Joseph of Citi, who will discuss identity theft, and Jenefer Duane of Elder Financial Protection Network, who will present on the hiring of in-home care.  There will also be an opportunity for attendees to receive one-on-one counseling with representatives from various organizations.

“Education is a powerful way to prevent identity theft and other crimes,” said Citi’s Victoria Joseph. “Anything we can do to help people learn to avoid financial scams and fraud ultimately benefits all of us in the community.”

“It is estimated that nearly 250,000 elders are victims of financial abuse in California each year,” said Jenefer Duane, Founder and CEO of EFPN.  “According to the California Welfare Directors Association, only one in 100 cases are actually reported due to lack of awareness, isolation and fear of retaliation or loss of independence.   EFPN is pleased to partner with Citi to bring community education to our elders so that they are equipped to protect themselves from these unscrupulous criminals.”

The workshop is a collaborative effort between Citi and Elder Financial Protection Network, Office of the San Francisco District Attorney, California Department of Consumer Affairs, California Department of Corporation – Seniors Against Investment Fraud (SAIF) Program, and West Bay Conference Center.  The event is free of charge with lunch provided.  Seating is limited with registration required by June 9.  Please call 415.749.6470 to reserve a seat.

EFPN is an award-winning non-profit organization that works to prevent financial abuse of elders through community education and the training of financial professionals in identifying and reporting suspected abuse. For more information, visit www.bewiseonline.org or call 415.956.5556. To report suspected elder abuse, call the California Attorney General’s Office  Elder Abuse Reporting Hotline toll free 1-888-436-3600 (24 hours). Reports of suspected abuse are kept strictly confidential.

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Protecting Aging Women in Honor of Mother’s Day and World Elder Abuse Awareness month, EFPN Launches Elder Justice Act Petition Drive

EFPN kicked off the Call to Action: Elder Justice Act petition with a whirlwind week in Washington, D.C. in tandem with the Older Women’s League’s 29^th annual Mother’s Day Policy Briefing on Capitol Hill May 12 during Elder Abuse Awareness week. This year OWL focused on women and elder abuse.

Anywhere from 500,000 to 5 million individuals suffer from the affects of abuse, neglect and/or financial exploitation in any given year. Women make up an estimated two-thirds of the victims of these crimes.

EFPN was in D.C. to help highlight the release of “Elder Abuse: A Women’s Issue”, OWL’s latest report, and encouraged people who care about our treasured elders to sign onto the Elder Justice Act petition.

Just over a week later nearly 700 people have signed on to the petition to protect our elders and we aren’t going to stop until our national leaders take notice and pass significant legal protections for our seniors.

While I was in Washington, Ellie Sue Schafer, director of the visitors’ office of the White House, the inspiration of the proclamation in 2004, which is now a nationwide if not an international campaign, gave me a special tour of the president’s house. Schafer has been a longtime EFPN friend and is a strong senior advocate.

On a local note, prior to going to Washington, EFPN joined San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris; Assemblymember Norma Torres (D-Pomona), who authored the Elder Abuse Act (AB 768); Police Chief Heather Fong and senior advocates to urge support for the bill’s passage.

AB 768 will strengthen California’s Penal Code making it easier to investigate and prosecute crimes against seniors (see EFPN’s AB 768 blog post).

This is very important, as the bill includes strong punishment for criminal acts of financial abuse against elders. It recognizes the urgency as financial exploitation of seniors has increased 150 percent within the past 10 years causing monetary losses estimated to be several billion dollars annually.

Get your family and friends involved by getting them to sign onto the EJA petition link to protect our treasured elders. We also encourage you to stay up to date with progress of this petition, significant legislation, and other tips to protect yourself and advocate for seniors by getting rapid updates with EFPN Twitter and becoming a EFPN Facebook fan.

EFPN Tweets!

As part of the Call to Action: EJA campaign, EFPN has started a Twitter page. You can follow all of EFPN’s activities in California and beyond.

Click here to see what we’re up to!

California poised to lead the halt of financial elder abuse and other abuse

By Heather Cassell

San Francisco – California is a prime target for financial abuse as the nation’s highest retirement destination with an estimated 4.9 million people over 65-years of age living in the Golden State in 2003. That same population is expected to jump to more than 9 million by 2020.

Financial-related abuse of seniors is exploding. Reports of financial exploitation of the elderly has increased 150 percent within the past 10 years with monetary losses estimated to be several billion dollars annually, according to Jenefer Duane, founder and CEO of the Elder Financial Protection Network.

An estimated $4.8 billion dollars of California’s seniors’ assets are at risk, according to Duane, one of the senior advocates at the Gene Friend Recreation Center May 7 who came out in support of AB 768, an anti-elder abuse bill that will amend California’s Penal Code establishing emotional, physical, and financial abuse committed against a senior or dependent adult as a crime throughout the state.

AB 768 will strengthen California’s Penal Code making it easier to investigate and prosecute crimes against seniors by eliminating the required proof of knowledge of someone’s age or dependency status or the definition of caretaker; allows evidence of abuse as sufficient proof; and it establishes strict penalties in order to be charged with elder abuse.

Within the first few months of this year the San Francisco Police Department has received more than 100 cases involving financial abuse of seniors, San Francisco Chief of Police Heather Fong said. In 2008, the police department received more than 400 cases of financial-related abuse involving seniors.

Additionally, the police department has received more than 40 cases of reported elder abuse this year. In 2008, there were more than 240 reported cases of elder abuse, Fong said.

It is important for seniors and those who care about our elderly population to report elder abuse, especially suspected financially-related abuse, as it is underreported, especially financial elder abuse, according to A. Alan Kennedy, assistant district attorney and manager of the Elder Abuse Unit of the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office.

Duane, Assemblywoman Norma Torres (D-Pomona), who authored AB 768, San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris, and senior advocates are calling Californians to action to protect the state’s elderly—especially when so many of our elders are unwilling to report crimes against them.

“Elder abuse is a crime. Make no mistake. It must be reported and it must be stopped…we owe it to you to do everything we can to protect you,” Duane told seniors gathered at the center. She urged them to tell their friends about the bill and to report suspected incidents of abuse.

Seniors who are victims of financially-related abuse are more likely to be institutionalized and the mortality rate of seniors who are abused is three times higher than that of seniors who do not experience abuse, according Duane.

It’s important for seniors and those who care about our elders—a treasured asset of our families and communities—to support the passage of AB 768, that will amend California’s Penal Code establishing emotional, physical, and financial abuse committed against a senior or dependent adult as a crime throughout the state.

This bill is unique in that it recognizes acts of fraud, theft, embezzlement, forgery and other financially-related crimes as a form of abuse that can leave seniors in financial ruin at a stage in their lives when they should be enjoying the fruits of their labors.

“An elder who has lost their life’s savings cannot go back to work and regain what they made their entire life. This affects an elder’s ability to remain independent in their home and can result in early and unnecessary institutionalization placement in a nursing home,” said Duane.

The community is joining together to be a “loud voice in support of our seniors,” Harris said.

“The current elder abuse statutes are as about solid as Swiss cheese,” Harris continued. “[We want to] make sure that we have the teeth in this statute to take a bite out of those crimes and send those offenders where they belong.”

Torres added, the law will “make it easier to protect seniors as we protect our children,” who need to be respected, should be taken care of, and should be protected from abuse, she said.

Call to Action: EJA is Going Strong

In just 48 hours, EFPN and its partners have already collected hundreds of signatures for the Call to Action: EJA campaign. We will not stop until we send a clear signal to Washington, DC that the Elder Justice Act must be passed now! Please click here to sign the petition. It takes seconds, but goes a long way.

The Elder Justice Act:

• Would provide federal resources to support State and community efforts on the front lines dedicated to fighting elder abuse with scarce resources and fragmented systems.
• Assuring adequate public-private infrastructure and resources to prevent, detect, treat, understand, intervene in and, where appropriate, prosecute elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation.

You can also follow EFPN on Facebook! Become a fan today.

EFPN Board of Directors Welcomes Four New Members

At the April meeting of the EFPN Board of Directors, four new members were confirmed! The new additions have diverse backgrounds, and will add wonderful insight, energy and support for EFPN’s activities in community education, training, and public awareness initiatives.  The four new members are Kristin Fabos, Helen Karr, Heather McMills and Gil McQuarrie.

Kristin Fabos most recently served as the Executive Director of SeniorNet, and was a key player in the organization’s development and growth.

Instead of retiring at the end of a successful career in the business world, Helen Karr went to law school and was sworn in to practice California law on her 64th birthday. She currently works in the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office Elder Abuse Unit.

Heather McMills has over a decade of experience in the financial industry and is the Managing Partner of McKean and McMills Family Partners.

Gil McQuarrie is a CPA, providing CFO services to mid-size and early stage companies.

Welcome, all!

EFPN receives grants from Marin Community Foundation and Wells Fargo Foundation; Seeks new members for Marin FAST Team

EFPN is very pleased to announce that Marin Community Foundation and Wells Fargo have awarded the organization major grants to fund community outreach and education. Both MCF and Wells Fargo recognize that it is more important than ever for EFPN to form collaborative partnerships that build public awareness, drive community outreach and provide professional training so that seniors in California and beyond can protect themselves from financial exploitation and fraud. We are thrilled to have MCF and Wells Fargo as our partners in the fight against elder financial abuse.

A portion of these funds will be used to sponsor the Marin FAST Team through June, 2010. The Marin FAST is a group of volunteer professionals who work together to identify and prevent elder financial abuse by assisting local social service agencies and law enforcement to investigate suspected elder financial abuse, educate professionals who serve elders and provide information and referral to community members.

Marin FAST will hold its first meeting of 2009 on Wednesday, April 29 from 12 – 2PM, at the Marin Community Foundation’s Redwood Room, 5 Hamilton Landing, Suite 200, Novato, CA 94949. The guest speaker will be Mr. Nick Trunzo, Director of the Division of Aging and Adult Services. He will provide an update on aging services provided by the county of Marin, including the restructuring of the Division of Aging and Adult Services and Adult Protective Services. Please RSVP to 415.897.9555 by Friday, April 24. Or you can email admin@bewiseonline.org.

The FAST is looking for new members! For more information, please call 415.897.9555 or email admin@bewiseonline.org. An EFPN staff member or Marin FAST participant will get back to you.

Star One Credit Union Honored for Service to the Elderly

Star One Credit Union President, Rick Heldebrant and EFPN Founder and CEO, Jenefer Duane

Contact: Jenefer Duane, Founder & CEO

Elder Financial Protection Network

415.956.5556

jduane@bewiseonline.org

SAN FRANCISCO — A nonprofit that protects the elderly from financial exploitation presented Star One Credit Union with its Visionary Leadership Award, recognizing the credit union’s efforts to protect the aged from financial abuse.

The award was conferred at the March 26 Call to Action, the yearly conference of the Elder of Financial Protection Network.

The EFPN cited the Sunnyvale, California-based credit union for its early and extraordinary attention to its retiree account holders.

In 1993 when Star One recognized that surviving family members of deceased account holders and retirees of Lockheed Martin needed help with their accounts, it committed two full-time employees to assist them. In 1997, the credit union launched its retiree services division adding an additional staff person to the cause.

The financial institution made the first report of its experience with the aged and their assets to Adult Protective Services in 2000. Star One created an early detection mechanism to keep elders’ assets from the hands of abusers. Its proactive approach increased staff awareness and connected seniors with much-needed assistance.

Since then, Star One has been an active participant in the Financial Institution Team of Santa Clara County with other financial institutions. The FIT educates the public, local senior citizens and those interested in their issues about the prevention of online fraud, scams, identity theft and other forms of exploitation.

In addition to its passionate support and participation in FIT, the Sunnyvale-based credit union holds regular educational seminars for its membership on this subject.

By Francine Brevetti

Call to Action 2009 Held in San Francisco

Call to Action 2009 Honorees

Contact: Jenefer Duane, Founder & CEO

Elder Financial Protection Network

415.956.5556

jduane@bewiseonline.org

SAN FRANCISCO — California’s 3.8 million seniors — the largest senior population in the country — are subjected to increasing instances of financial abuse since the onset of the country’s economic crisis, said speakers at the Elder Financial Protection Network’s fifth annual Call to Action on March 26.

“With this economic crisis, we are seeing more cases of equity stripping (the stealth of an elder’s resources).  We are going to find even more financial abuses coming to light,” said Judge Joyce Cram who presides over the Elder Court of the Superior Court of Contra Costa County.

According to Mary Counihan, San Francisco Aging and Adult Services program manager, “The numbers of recorded cases in San Francisco increased 55% between 2005 and 2008,” Counihan reported.  Meanwhile, California’s reported cases have grown by 18%.

Nationally over $2.6 billion are lost annually to financial crimes against the aged, reported Robert B. Blancato, national coordinator for the Elder Justice Coalition.

However, several bills in Congress and at the state level have been introduced to protect the elderly population against predators.  Meanwhile, new methods at the local level are being shaped to insulate the aged from exploitation.

Generally predators are people the elderly person knows and loves so the victim is usually reluctant to bring charges, several experts observed. In Cram’s recently established Elder Court, she has seen cases of a son obtaining title to his mother’s house and losing that asset through debt.  In another situation, a daughter was her mother’s conservator.  Her addiction to lotteries dismantled the mother’s estate.

The methods for defrauding this vulnerable population have become more diverse and more widespread, the speakers remarked, even beyond the more common intra-family exploitation.

“The sweetheart caregiver” as described by Virginia M.George, assistant professor at the John F. Kennedy University School of Law, refers to a professional caregiver’s insinuation into the heart and assets of a lonely elderly man in rehab and under medication.  After establishing a romantic relationship with her client, the caregiver frequently introduces her friends to him who prey upon the elderly man as well.

Legitimate financial instruments such as reverse mortgages and annuities have been used as instruments of defrauding the elderly. Speakers recounted several tales of aged people being induced persuaded to buy into a deferred annuity of a much longer term than the policyholders expected lifespan.

George cited an instance in which a marketer of annuities warned a family they would lose their house to satisfy Medi-Cal requirements unless they bought his product.

Corrupt licensed and unlicensed contractors are known to force their services, whether needed or not, on aged homeowners and charge them outrageous prices.

However, bills in Congress and in Sacramento promise to alleviate some of these offenses.  The most anticipated is the Elder Justice Act, HR448, which passed the House in February.  It would protect seniors from abuse by establishing special prosecution and research programs.  Also it would train prosecutors and other law-enforcement about elder abuse and its prevention.

Mark Herbert, Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s field representative with  special responsibility for the elderly, said the bill was about to be referred to the Senate.  Further, Herbert was optimistic about its passage.  In its previous form, the bill was introduced in 2008 by Rahm Emanuel, currently President Obama’s Chief of Staff and it was cosponsored by then Senators Obama and Joe Biden.

Since the president’s stimulus package will bring about $10 million to California, Herbert was hopeful that funding opportunities for the elderly would be available under the victims of crimes provisions.

Still, it will be a while before recovery dollars from Washington, DC will help at the local level. Counihan of San Francisco Aging and Adult Services reported that the agency’s budget has been cut by 10%.

Meanwhile, multidisciplinary approaches are emerging at the local level to protect seniors from predators.

George at JFK University supervises the Elder Law Clinic which provides free legal assistance to those over age 60 who have been financially exploited.

San Francisco’s Assistant District Attorney Alan Kennedy explained the goal of the recently created Elder Abuse Forensic Center which coordinates the expertise of many disciplines to investigate physical and financial issues.

Solano County Detective Steve Hosking urged the creation of a statewide uniform database of elder abuse just as one exists for abuses against children.

RECOGNITION

The March 26 Call to Action event honored institutions and individuals that have championed the protection of aged citizens against financial explication.

Star One Credit Union received the EFPN’s Visionary Leadership Award for its initiative in creating and implementing new techniques to protect the elderly.

The EFPN awarded its lifetime achievement Sentinel Award to Steven Reiss Esq. for his work in advocating for positive change in public policy concerning the protection of the elderly from financial abuse.

Tristan D.  Svare Esq. of the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office was presented the Professional Leadership Award for his work in investigating, and litigating elder financial abuse cases.

The EFPN conferred its Donald N. Phelps Community Service Award to Solano FAST, an innovative community model for protecting the elderly against financial exploitation.

The Elder Financial Protection Network was formed to address the growing problem of financial abuse of elders and dependent adults and to marshal interdisciplinary forces for their protection.

By Francine Brevetti