Bill Targeting Elder Abuse in Iowa Advances

State lawmakers are being asked to revamp and toughen laws designed to combat abuse, neglect and financial exploitation of Iowans 60 years or older.

A bill that was the product of a two-year study on elder abuse prevention and intervention cleared a Senate Human Resources subcommittee Wednesday. Backers of Senate File 2117 said Iowa has laws dealing with dependent abuse, but there are gaps and bureaucratic hurdles when problems beset elder individuals who are living independently yet may be vulnerable.

“What we’re trying to do is make people aware that there is abuse out there and how we can go about educating people to prevent it from happening and then give them some recourse, too,” said Sen. Mary Jo Wilhelm, D-Cresco, who led the three-member subcommittee. The legislation defines elderly Iowans as 60 years and older, which is consistent with the federal Older Americans Act, she added.

The 25-member Elder Abuse Prevention and Intervention Study Committee recommended the Legislature and Gov. Terry Branstad develop an elder abuse law that focuses on the unique needs of older Iowans and creates definitions that protect those who do not meet the dependent adult abuse criteria.

They also said the current system and laws for protecting older Iowans are fragmented and do not meet older citizens' needs. The panel called for implementing a statewide elder abuse intervention system and strengthening safeguards from financial exploitation, noting that the current financial power of attorney and conservatorship laws do not adequately protect older residents and their assets from perpetrators or from persons in a position of trust.

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Bill Targeting Elder Abuse in Iowa Advances