|
State Adult Guardianship Legislation: Directions of Reform – 2011 Update Now Available from the ABA Commission on Law and Aging
In 2011, at least 27 states passed a total of 40 adult guardianship bills – as compared with 21 states and 29 bills passed in 2010. Nebraska, Arizona and Colorado passed substantial bills with a focus on guardian responsibilities, oversight and compensation. Texas enacted a host of provisions addressing multiple aspects of its guardianship system. Ten states enacted the Uniform Adult Guardianship and Protective Proceedings Jurisdiction Act (UAGPPJA), bringing the total number of states with enactments to 30. To see the 2011 Legislative Update, scroll down the “Guardianship Law and Practice” page of the ABA Commission site to “State Laws and Policy,” which also includes annual legislative summaries dating back to 2005, as well as nine state-by-state legislative guardianship charts.
Stronger Federal Leadership Could Enhance National Response to
Elder Abuse
This March 2011 report
from the Federal Government Accountabily Office (GAO-11-208)
contains information on (1) existing estimates of the extent of
elder abuse and their quality, (2) factors associated with elder
abuse and its impact on victims, (3) characteristics and
challenges of state Adult Protective Services (APS) responsible
for addressing elder abuse, and (4) federal support and
leadership in this area.
June 29, 2011
Caregiving Costs to Working Caregivers: Double Jeopardy for Baby
Boomers Caring for Their Parents
Produced by the MetLife Mature Market Institute in
partnership with the National Alliance for Caregiving and the
Center for Long Term Care Research and Policy at New York
Medical College, the study analyzes data from the 2008 panel of
the National Health and Retirement Study (HRS) combined with
estimates to determine the extent to which older adult children
provide care to their parents, the roles gender and work play in
that caregiving, and the potential cost to the caregiver in lost
wages and future retirement income as a result of their support.
06/17/2011
Adult Guardianships: A “Best Guess” National Estimate and the
Momentum for Reform
This article written
for Trends, a publication of the National Center for State
Courts. It highlights the need for improved data collection as
demonstrated by the projection of active pending adult
guardianship cases nationwide and discusses the momentum that
led the authors to report: "Retrospectively, 2010 may be
remembered as a pivotal year in the call for guardianship reform
at both federal and state levels."
06/02/2011
The Uniform Power of
Attorney Act (UPOAA)
The Uniform Power of
Attorney Act (UPOAA) is a powerful way for states to promote the
responsible use of powers of attorney. It aims to facilitate the
use of the power of attorney (POA) as a low-cost planning tool
that enhances individual autonomy. Importantly, it recognizes
that the POA can be a “license to steal,” so its provisions help
prevent, detect and redress abuse. To date, nine states and the
US Virgin Islands have enacted the UPOAA. Learn more in the
AARP Public Policy Institute’s report on what states can do
about POA abuse. Also see the
Uniform Law Commission fact sheet on why states should adopt
the Act.”
Weathering the Storm: The Impact of the Great Recession on
Long-Term Services and Supports
The AARP Public Policy
Institute has released a report that documents how the recession
continues to affect state programs for older individuals and
adults with physical disabilities. Demand for publicly funded
services has grown, and resources are stretched thin, according
to this new 50-state study. The study also provides a very early
snapshot of the likelihood of states pursuing some of the
long-term services and supports provisions within the Affordable
Care Act. The report documents Adult Protective Services demands
for the states in which the State Unit on Aging administers the
APS program. In addition, there are state-by-state data on
changes in expenditures and changes in service requests for
state adult guardianship programs where the State Unit on Aging
or Medicaid agency has these data.
This related AARP Public Policy Institute Fact sheet
highlights the increased demand for adult protective services to
address cases of older adult mistreatment. It highlights
findings that, during the recent “Great Recession,” state APS
departments saw an uptick in complaints filed while their
resources went down or remained flat.
Adult Protective Services: Increased Demand and Decreased Funds
The AARP Public Policy
Institute has recently released a study titled:
Access to Long-Term Services and Supports: A 50-State Survey of
Medicaid Financial Eligibility Standards
The report contains
detailed information on Medicaid eligibility in all 50 states
and the District of Columbia. The report can be viewed here.
Market Survey of Long-Term Care Costs
The 2010 MetLife Market
Survey of Nursing Home, Assisted Living, Adult Day Services, and
Home Care Costs issued October 201
"10-Plus
Years After the Olmstead Ruling: Progress, Problems, and
Opportunities"
A new report by the
National Senior Citizens Law Center chronicles the advancements
made in the availability of community-based service options in
the aftermath of the The Supreme Court's 1999 Olmstead Ruling
decision, and identifies many of the barriers that remain and
opportunities for overcoming them.
Yakohama Declaration
At the first World
Congress on Adult Guardianship Law held in Yokohama, Japan,
October 2 to 4 October, 2010, the hosts and co-hosts decided to
issue the Yokohama Declaration to reconfirm the extremely
significant implications of the Adult Guardianship Law and the
international roles it will play in the years to come, while
making a proclamation to the world on the proper use of the
adult guardianship system. This Yokohama Declaration is the
result of the three-day congress, as summarized by the
participants.
Assessment of Older
Adults With Diminished Capacity
The American
Psychological Association and American Bar Association have
collaborated on a series of handbooks related to assessment of
older adults with diminished capacity. All three handbooks (for
lawyers, judges and psychologists) are available here.
Adult
Guardianship Court Data and Issues Results from an Online Survey
This report outlines
results and recommendations from an online survey that was a
joint project carried out by the CCJ/COSCA Joint Task Force on
Elders and the Courts and NCSC’s Center for Elders and the
Courts (CEC). The online survey instrument was distributed
through listservs sponsored by the National Association for
Court Management, and the National College of Probate Judges.
Caregiving in the U.S.
2009
By: National Alliance
for Caregiving in Collaboration with AARP; Funded by The MetLife
Foundation
December 2009
http://www.aarp.org/research/surveys/care/ltc/hc/articles/caregiving_09.html
When Disabled
Homeowners Lose Their Homes For A Pittance in Unpaid Property
Taxes: Some Lessons From In Re Mary Lowe
By Robert F. Harris,
Esq.; Charles P. Golbert, Esq.; and Barry Sullivan, Esq.
Reprinted with Permission from NAELA Journal, Vol. 5, No. 2 /
www.naela.org
The Economic Crisis
and Its Impact On State Aging Programs
A survey conducted by
the National Association of State Units on Aging (NASUA) reports
that although additional funding was provided by the American
Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, more than 20 percent of
states still must cut services. Nearly 80 percent of states have
waiting lists for home-delivered meals, and more than half have
waiting lists for personal care, homemaker services, and respite
care. Despite the increased need, more than 30 percent of states
face cuts of between six and 10 percent for FY 2010.
The Secretary of Health
and Human Services has sent a comprehensive report to Congress
entitled “Advance Directives
and Advance Care Planning.” The report, requested by
Congress in 2006, focuses on (1) the best ways to promote the
use of advance directives and advance care planning among
competent adults as a way to specify their wishes about
end-of-life care; and (2) addressing the needs of persons with
disabilities with respect to advance directives.
The report includes an excellent literature review on every
aspect of advance care planning, analyses of key ethical and
legal issues, and a discussion of opportunities to enhance the
effectiveness of advance care planning and advance directives.
Full report
Background report prepared by Charlie Sabatino of the ABA
Commission on Law and Aging
A study
on Elder Financial Abuse Prevention
This study
from the MetLife Mature Market
Institute (MMI), the
National Committee for the Prevention of Elder Abuse, and the
Center for Gerontology at
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University provides a
comprehensive understanding about the extent and implications of
elder financial abuse in all its various manifestations—personal,
institutional, and societal. Through an extensive review of
available information on elder abuse, this research enhances the
understanding of the complexities surrounding elder financial abuse,
the current magnitude of the issue, reasons why this issue is likely
to grow, and some recommendations of ways to potentially mitigate
this complex and devastating crime.
While difficult to present any comprehensive or consensus definition
of elder financial abuse, this study considers elder financial abuse
as “the unauthorized use or illegal taking of funds or property of
people aged 60 and older.” It is perpetrated by those who gain, and
then violate, the trust of an older person. They can be as close as
a family member, neighbor, or friend, or as distant as an invisible
voice on the telephone or an e-mail from the other side of the
globe.
Key Findings:
- While
underreported, the annual financial loss by victims of elder
financial abuse is estimated to be at least $2.6 billion dollars
- Elders’
vulnerabilities and larger net worth make them a prime target
for financial abuse
- The
increased aging of the population, social changes, and
technology advances will lead to a dramatic increase in the
opportunity for a growing level of elder financial abuse
- The
perpetrators of elder financial abuse are typically not
strangers and most are people who have gained the trust of the
older individual, including business and service professionals
and family members
- The
victims of elder financial abuse come from all walks of life,
and this type of abuse affects elders regardless of gender,
race, or ethnicity
Documents
from this study:
Elders and the
Courts: The Results of Needs Assessment
In 2008,
the National Center for State Courts (NCSC), with funding from
the Retirement Research Foundation of Chicago, launched the
Center for Elders and the Courts (CEC). This report is the
published results of a needs assessment NCSC carried out in
February 2009 for the purpose of identifying resources and tools
that should be addressed through the CEC’s website (www.eldersandcourts.org)
and training programs.
AARP
Radio Report on Parent Guardianship
December
23, 2008 - As the population continues to age, more baby boomers
are faced with caring for their disabled parents. For many,
assuming guardianship can often be the hardest and most trying
step in getting their parents the care they need. And differing
state laws are part of the problem. The Uniform Law Commission
(a group that seeks to reconcile inconsistent state laws) is
proposing a solution. Click here to learn more, from a panel of
exper.
Guardianship of the Elderly
This article was recently printed in Court Manager, the magazine
of the National Center for State Courts, and is linked here with
their permission.
In December 2008 AARP’s Public
Policy Institute released Power of Attorney Abuse: What States
Can Do About It, A Comparison of Current State Laws with the New
Uniform Power of Attorney Act by Lori A. Stiegel and Ellen
VanCleave Klem of the ABA Commission on Law and Aging. The
report provides background on POA abuse, analysis of the UPOAA’s
consumer protection provisions, detailed charts on how current
laws stack up against the UPOAA, and tips for enactment. The new
uniform act (UPOAA) enhances the use of this low-cost, flexible
planning tool – and at the same time it helps prevent, detect
and redress abuse of the POA. The report finds a large majority
of state laws lack protections for individuals creating
financial powers of attorney (POA). In 2009, about 12 states are
expected to consider adoption. Thus far, New Mexico and Idaho
have adopted the Act. It is hoped the report will aid in
enactment efforts. For more information contact NGA member Naomi
Karp (nkarp@aarp.org).
Executive Summary /
Complete Report
Center for Guardianship
Certification to Unveil Designation Name Change
Designation Name Change to
Occur in October 2008
HARRISBURG, PA- In October 2008, the Center for Guardianship
Certification (CGC) will be updating the name of the current
certification designations, Registered Guardian and Master
Guardian, to National Certified Guardian (NCG) and National
Master Guardian (NMG) respectively.
Release
Enduring Powers of Attorney:
Areas for Reform
The 2008 final report from
the Western Canada Law Reform Agencies (WCLRA), a consortium of
four western Canadian law reform agencies – the Alberta Law
Reform Institute, the British Columbia Law Institute, the
Manitoba Law Reform Commission and the Law Reform Commission of
Saskatchewan.
Executive Summary
|
Complete Report
NGA Featured in AARP April 21, 2008 Report - Who Guards the
Guardians
AARP Report Shows How States
Can Help Prevent Abuse Of Older Americans, Identifies Better
Ways For Courts To Oversee Guardianships
Guardianship
Monitoring:A National Survey of Court
Practices
Naomi Karp
AARP Public Policy Institute and Erica Wood ABA Commission on
Law and Aging
Summary
USA Today Reports:
Poor
elderly wait for care as Fla. system backs up
Public Guardianship After 25
Years: In the Best Interest of Incapacitated People? An
Executive Summary of the National Study of Public Guardianship
Phase II Report
Authored by Pamela Teaster
Ph. D; Erica Wood, JD; Winsor Schmidt, JD, LL.M.; and Susan
Lawrence, Ph.D.
Released in January of 2008 by the University of Kentucky and
the ABA Commission on Law and Aging. For more information, or to
order print copies of the executive summary for $5 and the Full
Report for $30, contact the ABA Commission at
abaaging@abanet.org.
State Adult
Guardianship Legislation:
Directions of Reform2007
From the Commission on Law
and Aging American Bar Association
Guardianship for the
Elderly: Protecting the Rights and Welfare of Seniors With Reduced
Capacity
A report issued by Senator
Gordon H. Smith, Ranking Member, United States Senate Special
Committee on Aging Senator Herb Kohl, Chairman, United States
Senate Special Committee on Aging
Uniform Adult Guardianship and Protective
Proceedings Jurisdiction Act
|
