Academy will educate financial institutions and service agencies to combat elder financial exploitation
The Huguette
Clark Family Fund for Protection of Elders announced today that it has
awarded a $30,000 grant to fund the launch of an Elder Justice Advocates
Academy. A project of the California Elder Justice Coalition, the
Advocates Academy will support state and national efforts to combat
elder financial abuse and provide relief to its victims. This includes
engaging financial institutions and educating stakeholders about the
Victims of Crime Act and other programs and resources for victims.
Commenting on the grant, Ian Clark Devine, an
advisor to the Fund, said: “Educating advocates, financial institutions
and social services agencies about policy needs is essential to
combating the problem of elder financial abuse. The California Elder
Justice Coalition (CEJC) has extensive experience in this area and is
well positioned to take the lead in developing strategies that can be
applied nationwide.”
“The Elder Justice Advocates Academy is an
important first step in promoting exchange among state elder justice
programs about how they’re being affected by federal developments and
how they’re responding,” said Lisa Nerenberg, executive director of the
CEJC. “It will build upon our state program by sharing the information,
strategies, and materials CEJC has produced and providing technical
assistance to help other communities implement promising practices. We
also plan to alert federal policy makers and advocates about states’
needs.”
The grant to launch the Elder Justice Academy
is the Fund’s fifth since its inception in 2013. Its earlier grants
provided financial support for programs to train Adult Protective
Service workers; help banks implement federal guidelines for sharing
customer information with investigatory agencies in cases of suspected
financial exploitation of the elderly; convene a roundtable of national
specialists to formulate specific proposals to prevent elder abuse; and
develop model civil statutes to help victims of financial exploitation
seek justice, recover assets and rebuild their lives.
About the California Elder Justice Coalition
The CEJC was formed in 2008 to provide a voice
from the field in elder justice policy. It emerged in response to gaps
in services, coordination, and leadership that led to a fragmented and
poorly coordinated response to elder abuse, neglect, and the violation
of older adults’ rights. Today the CEJC has 72 members, including state
organizations, coalitions, prosecutors’ offices, departments of aging
and adult services, local agencies, researchers, and individuals.
About the Huguette Clark Family Fund for Protection of Elders
Established in 2013, the Huguette Clark Family
Fund for Protection of Elders is a donor-advised fund created by
members of the Clark family to honor their late aunt, Huguette Clark,
who was victimized by her caregivers and advisors for more than two
decades. The Fund supports innovative organizations and programs to
fight the financial abuse of elders, addressing immediate needs
overlooked by traditional programs as well as innovative models that can
be replicated nationwide.
The family’s strategy has been to make
targeted grants to develop pilot programs that could be scaled or
replicated later for broader impact. Grants are related to the abuse
that Huguette Clark herself suffered, specifically the prevention of
undue influence, manipulation and financial abuse by institutions,
professionals and caregivers.
Grants made by the Fund have supported
programs in three general areas: developing better tools and training
for those who are fighting elder abuse; encouraging meaningful
collaboration of experts to make their work more effective; and
providing services for victims.
1. The Fund’s first grant in December 2013
developed online training modules for Adult Protective Service (APS)
workers to help them recognize and report financial exploitation and
undue influence. While APS workers are on the front lines of fighting
elder abuse, standards for these positions vary dramatically by state
and are often inadequate to today’s challenges. The grant to San Diego
State University created two one-hour, online training modules that are available nationally.
2. The Fund’s second grant responded to the
reluctance of banks to share information when they suspect financial
abuse. The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999 permits financial institutions
to disclose customer information to authorities in cases of suspected
elder financial abuse. But unclear about their legal liability, banks
routinely ignored requests for this information. The Fund’s grant helped
the Philadelphia Corporation on Aging and the National Adult Protective
Services Association develop a standardized form and protocols for
financial institutions and APS agencies to facilitate the sharing of
information. The form
has been credited with getting several banks to release records to APS
workers for the first time. The program received a 2016 Aging
Achievement Award in the Elder Abuse Prevention category from the
National Association of Area Agencies on Aging.
3. Many specialists in aging have devoted
their lives to the fight against elder abuse. To improve communication
and coordination among them, the Fund sponsored a roundtable of experts
in Washington, DC. Hosted by the National Center for Victims of Crime,
the roundtable identified and prioritized unmet needs in the realm of
elder financial exploitation, and produced a white paper with five practical recommendations for action.
Full Article & Source:
Huguette Clark Family Fund for Protection of Elders to Support New Elder Justice Advocates Academy
I am glad to see some of the Clark funds used fighting elder abuse. I hope guardianship abuse is considered too.
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