Protecting the rights, independence, and safety of older people by exploring barriers, sharing information and ideas, and providing a voice from the field to policy makers
Who We Are
CEJC is a multidisciplinary membership organization providing a voice from the field in elder justice policy and practice. We promote the rights of older adults, including protection against age-based discrimination and elder abuse, and equitable access to resources, health care, and the legal system by those in greatest need. Our programs include: Nat'l Elder Justice Advocates Academy The Academy provides advocates with information, updates, promising practices, webinars, toolkits, and opportunities to join in the national dialogue on elder justice. Senior Medicare Patrol CEJC partners with the California Senior Medicare Patrol to inform professionals, advocates, and the public about how Medicare fraud harms seniors, caregivers, and the public, and what they can do. |
Policy
EJC advocates for policy reform, raises awareness about elder justice developments, creates opportunities for exchange among advocates and policy makers, and provides consultation, training, and technical assistance. Our work reflects our Principles of Elder Justice handout and video. CEJC Weighs in on CA Aging Plan CEJC's recommendations for the Older Americans Act State Plan include:
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Learn
Our educational materials focus on leading edge issues in elder justice with the aim of fostering new ideas and innovations. They include:
In Case You Missed It: A recording of our most recent webinar is now available: September 8th: Stop the Bleeding - Temporarily Freezing Assets in Elder Abuse Cases |
News & Updates |
To view the full current News & Updates and to subscribe to News & Updates emails, visit News & Updates September/October 2021. |
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National News
Elder Justice Act Reauthorization Introduced The Elder Justice Reauthorization and Modernization Act of 2021 (EJRMA) is moving forward as part of the budget reconciliation package. Introduced earlier this year in the House as H.R.4969 (authored by House Ways and Means Committee Chair Richard Neal with primary co-sponsor Rep. Suzanne Bonamici) and in the Senate as S.2674, (authored by Sen. Ron Wyden, Chair of the Finance Committee), the bill includes the following:
Senators Call for Data on Guardianship Prompted by the highly publicized Britney Spears’ case, Senators Elizabeth Warren and Bob Casey wrote a letter to Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra and Attorney General Merrick Garland, asking for data ranging from the number of people currently under guardianships in the U.S. to the costs of reforming the system. See nationwide guardianship data. Who’s Who in DC? This new guide by NCEA, produced in collaboration with the Elder Justice Coalition, describes members of the House and Senate who have been influential in shaping elder justice policy and congressional committees with jurisdiction over elder justice-related legislation. See Who’s Who in DC? |
California News
Elder & Disability Justice Coordinating Council Moves Forward Plans continue to move ahead for California’s Elder & Disability Justice Coordinating Council, which is coordinated jointly by California’s Department of Aging, Department of Social Services, Department of Health & Human Services Agency (CHHS), and Department of Justice. Department personnel have already started meeting, and the group is in the process of selecting 15 stakeholder members from local government, advocacy and community-based organizations, and the public. For more information see Elder & Disability Justice Coordinating Council webpage Weigh In on APS The California Department of Social Services is developing a strategic/operational plan for Adult Protective Services (APS) in California for the next 3-5 years and wants to hear your ideas! They are holding focus groups and inviting advocates and stakeholders to provide suggestions for improving the program. There will be two sessions: Thursday October 21st 10-11:30 a.m. https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83365124926 Meeting ID: 833 6512 4926 Tuesday October 26th 1:30-3 p.m. https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82949651251 Meeting ID: 829 4965 1251 |
State News (Other States)
New York Hosts State Summit to Expand its Reach Advocates in New York are developing an Elder Abuse Action Agenda, a strategic plan that will focus on reaching underserved communities. The initiative, which is sponsored by Lifespan in partnership with the State’s Office of Victim Services, features a virtual summit, “Seeking Solutions: Elder Abuse – Creating a Clear Vision of Where We Go from Here” that includes online panels addressing elder abuse in underserved communities. The sessions focus on African American, Native American, Latino, immigrant and refugee, and LGBT elders and those living in rural areas.
Upcoming Meetings The next NNSEJC Membership meeting is on Thursday, November 18, 2021. For more information, contact NSEJC@gmail.com. NNSEJC was formed in 2018 to build capacity at the state and national levels by sharing information, resources, and expertise. For more information and updates, see NNSEJC. |
New Resources
ACL Awards NCEA Cooperative Agreement The Administration for Community Living (ACL) has awarded a new cooperative agreement to the University of Southern California to continue to operate the National Center on Elder Abuse (NCEA). USC will receive $995,034 for the first year of this three-year project to:
Thinking Ahead Roadmap This “how to” approach to avoiding fraud, exploitation, and financial mistakes was developed by Dr. Marti DeLiema of the University of Minnesota and Naomi Karp and Steve Vernon, research scholars at the Stanford Center on Longevity, with support from AARP and the Society of Actuaries. Based on interviews with experts from multiple disciplines, focus groups, and an online community forum of over 100 older adults, it describes six steps to help people:
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Research & Reports
Meta-Analysis of Research on Violence Against Elders Earlier this summer, the Center for Victim Research, as part of its Evidence Hour webinar series, focused on older victims. Each event in the series showcases a recent systematic review or meta-analysis about victimization, trauma, or victim services featuring the researchers and a practitioner who discuss the implications of the findings for victim service providers and researchers. Presenters for the session included Drs. Khiya Marshall Mullins and Jeffrey Herbst of the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention and Dr. Joy Ernst of Wayne State University. See Meta-analysis. CVR has also produced Elder Abuse Victimization: What We Know from Research- and Practice-Based Evidence (2020). APS Training: A Brief Report on the State of the Nation This report by Marion Liu and Leslie Ross, which appeared in the Journal of Elder Abuse & Neglect, describes the findings of a survey on the extent to which adult protective service workers are using the National Adult Protective Services Association’s (NAPSA) twenty-three core curriculum training modules, each of which focuses on a “core competency.” Although there was wide variation across the states, the most used modules were APS Overview, Agency Standards, Abusive Relationships, and Intake (delivered in over 40 states). The most administered core competencies for new hires were the APS Overview, Agency Standards, Documentation, Intake, and Developmental Disability. See APS Training. The Britney Effect: How CA is Grappling with Conservatorship Even before Spears’ situation captured the public’s attention, state advocates and policymakers have been calling for reforms to California’s conservatorship system. This report by the non-profit journalism venture Cal Matters focuses on the adults with untreated mental illnesses who are experiencing homelessness. See Conservatoship. Guardianship Network Calls for Reforms In May, the National Guardianship Network convened 125 advocates, family guardians, judges, lawyers, scholars, and other stakeholders for the Fourth National Guardianship Summit to discuss the current state of guardianship and develop recommendations for reform and improvement around the theme of maximizing autonomy and ensuring accountability. At the conclusion of the summit, delegates approved 22 final recommendations. |