WalletHub on Elder Abuse Protections

Author(s): Scott Douglas Jacobsen

Publication (Outlet/Website): The Good Men Project

Publication Date (yyyy/mm/dd): 2025/01/18

Chip Lupo is an experienced personal finance writer currently contributing to WalletHub. With a background in journalism from Elon University, he has worked across various sectors, including finance, sports, politics, and religion. Chip has expertise in SEO best practices, content creation, editing, and proficiency in Microsoft and Adobe applications. His career spans over two decades, during which he has held roles as a compliance analyst, wire editor, and night city editor. Chip’s passion for media and communications drives his commitment to high-quality content. Lupo discuss elder abuse protections in the U.S., emphasizing the growing elderly population, projected to double by 2060. They highlight disparities among states, noting that Wisconsin, Vermont, and Massachusetts excel in elder abuse prevention due to strong funding, robust regulations, and innovative solutions like elder abuse shelters. Conversely, rural states like South Carolina, Utah, and South Dakota lag due to policy gaps and fewer resources. They explore financial fraud as a prevalent form of elder abuse, stressing the need for better funding, local lobbying, and societal changes to protect vulnerable populations. 

Scott Douglas Jacobsen: We are here again with the wonderful Chip Lupo. We will discuss elder abuse protections, an essential and often underappreciated topic. It’s a serious and sensitive issue that hasn’t been discussed enough. I’m glad you all took the time to research this critical subject. So, how much is elder abuse costing Americans annually? Let’s put a dollar figure on it.

Chip Lupo: Elder abuse is a significant problem, Scott. One reason we need to address this issue is that the U.S. population is aging as people live longer. The number of Americans aged 65 and older is projected to nearly double, from 49 million in 2016 to 95 million by 2060. Acting now is crucial to ensure a better quality of life for our aging population.

Jacobsen: If we consider the extent of suffering for individuals across different cities, what does the scope look like in the United States? With tens of millions of people aged 65 and older, how prevalent is elder abuse? What are we looking at?

Lupo: Different states have varying measures in place to protect older people. In states with higher retirement populations, protections tend to be stronger, but exceptions exist. For instance, Wisconsin ranks number one in elder abuse protection. While Wisconsin isn’t traditionally considered a retirement state, its older population is relatively high due to younger people leaving for job opportunities elsewhere. As a result, Wisconsin has developed robust resources to protect its elderly population.

On the other hand, states like South Carolina (my home state), Utah, and South Dakota rank lower in terms of elder abuse protections. These disparities are often driven by policy and resource allocation.

Jacobsen: Now, why are states like Massachusetts, Vermont, Ohio, and Virginia at the top regarding elder abuse protections?

Lupo: The answer often comes down to funding and infrastructure. For example, Vermont has the second-highest ombudsman funding per elderly resident and the second-highest number of elderly care organizations offering services.

In many cases, adequate funding is a key factor. Another critical aspect of elder abuse that often gets overlooked is financial fraud. Elderly individuals are prime targets for scams, including phone, mail, and online fraud. For instance, Vermont has one of the lowest average financial losses per fraud case targeting older people, highlighting the effectiveness of its preventive measures.

So, safeguards are in place to address complaints and minimize the financial losses due to fraud. However, for those in states that don’t offer a strong framework for protection, there is often a lack of prevention, significant neglect, and exploitation. 

Jacobsen: Why do these particular states and cities face such conditions, and what do the numbers show?

Lupo: In those situations, it’s often policy-driven. Much of it comes down to the resources available and the quality of care in nursing homes. States that rank well generally have measures in place to ensure the quality of nursing homes and other resources.

The data shows that states at the bottom of the rankings often lack these safeguards. This includes fewer assisted living facilities, fewer certified volunteer ombudspersons, and less overall funding for elder care. It boils down to the types of organizations in place, their quality, and the resources to manage them effectively.

Jacobsen: What kinds of resources are most effective?

Lupo: The states or cities with higher investments in prevention and elder care stand out. I’m glad you brought that up, Scott. One significant reason Wisconsin ranks at the top of the list is that it is one of only 22 states with elder abuse shelters. These shelters function similarly to those for at-risk teens or battered spouses.

These shelters provide mistreated elderly individuals a place to escape abusive situations, access counselling, and find temporary shelter until their complaints are resolved. It’s a relatively new development but an important one. States at the top of the rankings often have these resources and the funding to manage them effectively.

Jacobsen: Are there any sociocultural factors at play? You mentioned earlier the role of employment opportunities and the migration of younger people as younger individuals leave for better job prospects, cities or states age. Are there other sociocultural factors that influence these numbers?

Lupo: Sociocultural factors certainly play a role, especially in lower-ranked states like South Carolina, Utah, and South Dakota. These states are more rural, with traditional family structures where elderly individuals are often left to fend for themselves. This trend is consistent across the bottom half of the rankings.

nother factor to consider is gender. Men tend to die younger than women by a few years in most countries, including the U.S. and Canada. This gender gap in lifespan impacts elder care dynamics, as women are more likely to live alone in their later years and may face additional challenges related to neglect or abuse.

Jacobsen: So, I can think of this from several levels. For instance, if women live longer, there will be more older women, making them more likely to be exploited simply because of their numbers. Are those kinds of dynamics at play as well?

Lupo: They are. While it’s not directly addressed in this study, it’s a known issue. Men traditionally die younger than women, and in some of these traditionally bound states, women are often left to fend for themselves. Sometimes, when men die earlier, they don’t leave their spouses with adequate resources to live on. There’s often a lack of financial preparation, and that becomes a significant factor, especially in rural states like South Carolina, Utah, and South Dakota, which rank at the bottom of the elder abuse protection list.

In many cases, the surviving spouse may find themselves in a dire financial situation, which makes them vulnerable to fraud. Fraudsters actively target individuals in such circumstances, preying on their vulnerability and exploiting their situations.

Jacobsen: That’s sad. What about cases of credit card fraud, business scams, and robocalls? What are the most frequent forms of elder abuse that aren’t physical but are more financial or social?

Lupo: Those include everything you’ve mentioned, plus Social Security fraud. Many state attorneys general have programs to educate older people on scams. For example, they emphasize that agencies like the IRS or the Social Security Administration will never call you directly. Instead, they will send official correspondence on agency letterhead.

Phone scams are the most prevalent because many elderly individuals still use landline telephones and haven’t embraced cell phone technology. For instance, my father-in-law, who is 84 years old, still uses a landline and constantly receives calls. Some are just sales pitches for Medicare plans, but others are fraudulent, like threats to cut off power unless gift cards are purchased. Fortunately, my father-in-law is well-educated and savvy enough to spot scams, but many others aren’t as fortunate.

Elderly individuals with dementia or other cognitive impairments are especially vulnerable, as scammers exploit their reduced ability to detect deception.

Jacobsen: What can people notice regarding changes in behaviour and personal care as potential indicators—not necessarily confirmations—of elder abuse? How can someone make an objective assessment of the elders in their lives?

Lupo: And that triggers something, Scott. One of the things that moves these states to the top of the rankings is that they actively crack down on elder abuse. They are very strong in minimizing misconduct in nursing homes. For example, there are strict requirements for inspections, and they enforce severe penalties for nursing home employees who abuse elderly residents. States like Wisconsin, Massachusetts, and Vermont have robust safeguards in place.

They are very punitive—yes, that’s the word—in dealing with misconduct in nursing home facilities.

Jacobsen: Should there be legal restrictions against caregivers financially benefiting from the death of a person they were caring for?

Lupo: Let’s take a look at what some of the experts say on this. One expert mentioned that elder abuse often results from family members or caretakers in in-home settings—it’s not limited to nursing homes. Policies should be expanded to address these in-home situations.

States at the top of the rankings greatly regulate and monitor nursing facilities, but perhaps more attention should be given to in-home care. Just as we do for domestic violence cases, we need to ensure protection for elderly residents who might face abuse, whether financial, emotional, or otherwise. So yes, states should do more to crack down on this issue.

Jacobsen: What about the weight given to elder abuse, gross neglect, and exploitation complaints? Why is it given triple weight at 24 points?

Lupo: Let’s look at that. It’s given that weight because these complaints represent a broad range of issues directly affecting older people. Most of these complaints are made to the state’s long-term care ombudsman, who oversees elder care programs. These complaints often include elder abuse, gross neglect, and exploitation, which are serious concerns for residents aged 65 and older.

It’s weighted so heavily because it targets that demographic, making it one of the three key metrics in the prevalence category. Wisconsin, for instance, has excelled in this area. Let’s check which state has the best prevalence in terms of elder abuse.

Now, if you go to our survey, you can sort these numbers. The rankings have little double triangles that you can click on to sort. Let’s see… Louisiana has the best prevalence ranking, followed by Florida, Michigan, New Hampshire, and Indiana.

Prevalence covers a range of issues. It’s not just limited to complaints; it also includes the fraud rate and the estimated financial loss per reported fraud. This is a key metric, so 40 points out of the 100 go toward prevalence. The breakdown is 40 points for prevalence, 30 for resources, and 30 for protection. More emphasis is placed on prevalence because it specifically targets residents aged 65 and older.

Jacobsen: What kind of actions can we take between 2016 and 2060, given that the number of individuals aged 65 and older will double from 49 million in 2016 to a projected 95 million in 2060?

Lupo: Right. Now is the time to act, as we mentioned earlier. This is largely policy-driven. Beyond that, individual behaviours need to be adjusted when protecting older people. However, more lobbying at the local level is essential. As I’ve said before, you must first create change in City Hall to create change in Washington.

It’s critical to lobby local politicians and lawmakers to ensure the implementation and funding of well-supported programs. With the 65+ population expected to reach 95 million by 2060, we must ensure funding keeps pace with inflation. We cannot set a static budget number. Instead, adjustments must be made for cost-of-living increases to ensure these programs remain effective and well-funded over the coming decades.

Jacobsen: Okay, that’s it for today, Chip. 

Lupo: Bye. Talk to you tomorrow.

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