Laws To Protect The Elderly
With the rise in the number of atrocities faced by the senior citizens of this country, a number of laws have been drafted by the federal as well as state legislatures. You will be alarmed to know that close to two million Americans over the age of 65 have faced abuse at some point of time. |
Abuse of the elderly includes neglect, ill-treatment and financial exploitation, and since seniors are frail, easily terrified, are usually unwell and live in isolation, they are most susceptible to all forms of abuse. Thankfully the lawmakers of the land have taken this problem seriously and today there are laws in place that provide adequate protection to the elderly citizens of America. Like the Employee Retirement Income Security Act law, aimed at protecting those elders who have retirement benefit accounts. The financial institutions and individuals who look after these accounts on behalf of the elderly cannot do as they please with the elders’ money, thanks to the ERISA, which keeps a close eye on them.
Next, there is the Social Security Act that President Franklin D. Roosevelt established in the year 1935. This law has prevented many elders from having to live in poverty, who have nothing to fall back on post retirement age. Social security gives a monthly benefit to elders so that their living costs and medical expenses are covered.
The third law is the Older Americans Act of 1965, designed to prevent abuse of seniors and the elderly. The Older Americans Act has under its wing the National Center on Elder Abuse and the Administration on Aging, both aimed at protecting seniors from becoming victims of abuse.
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