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.
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Policy
CEJC 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. |
Learn
Our educational materials focus on leading edge issues in elder justice with the aim of fostering new ideas and innovations. They include: |
New! CEJC A*TEAM Update
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CEJC Releases Third
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Donna Benton Presents on NCEA WEAAD Webinar CEJC Chair Donna Benton was a featured presenter for the 2023 National Center on Elder Abuse (NCEA) WEAAD webinar, titled “Trauma-Informed Practices to Address Abuse and Build Resilience.” Focused on the nexus between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and elder abuse, panelists discussed the influences ACEs can have on both older adults needing care and on their caregivers. Presenting to over 900 virtual attendees in from 49 states and across the globe, Benton, Assistant Dean of Diversity and Inclusion at USC’s Davis school of Gerontology and director of the Los Angeles Caregiver Resource Center, joined NCEA Director Laura Mosqueda, MD, and presenters from USC’s Secure Old Age Lab, the Diverse Elders Coalition, SAGECare, and the National Consumer Voice for Long-Term Care, offering strategies to assure that response to reports of elder abuse are person-centered, trauma-informed, and culturally responsive. CEJC's Blueprint Featured at California Awareness Event Policy Director Carol Sewell described local innovations showcased in CEJC’s 3rd Elder Justice Blueprint, Reinforcing California’s Elder Justice Infrastructure: Committing to Equity and Inclusion, at the State of California’s World Elder Abuse Awareness Day event in Sacramento. The presentation highlighted locally-developed elder justice advances that could be replicated by attendees at the June 1 event. Hosted by the Department of Social Services, the event theme was “California’s Response to Homelessness in Older Adults and People with Disabilities,” with a keynote from Margot Kushel, MD, a leading researcher in older adult homelessness. For more on elder homelessness see CEJC's Toolkit Preventing Elder Homelessness. 
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Lisa Nerenberg,
CEJC Executive Director |
New! Settlement Reached in San Francisco's Laguna Honda Abuse CaseThe second of three lawsuits over egregious abuse at San Francisco’s Laguna Honda Hospital and Rehabilitation Center has ended with a $2.2 million settlement from the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. Stemming from a 2019 health department inspection, the suit alleged the city-run facility allowed years of verbal, mental, and physical abuse of 23 disabled residents by staff, along with violations of residents’ privacy. The case brought to light a culture of abuse at the nation’s largest nursing home, with staff taking and sharing photographs of residents in distress and inappropriate states of undress. The first lawsuit was settled in 2021 at a cost of $800,000; the third suit is still pending.
State funding sought for California’s Public Guardian and Public Conservator systemsThe essential roles of the Public Conservator and Public Guardian (PGPC) are established in California law, yet no state or federal dollars support these critical services, which operate solely with county discretionary dollars and can easily be bypassed when budgets are tight or other priorities loom. Increasing requirements on the Public Guardian and rising caseloads have stretched these systems beyond reason, with average Public Guardian caseloads running 65% higher than recognized standards. Despite this, policy makers continue to add to the numbers eligible for conservatorship in an effort to address chronic homelessness and severe mental illness.
Conservatorship is a last resort when adults are unable to protect themselves against serious threats and danger as the result of dementias or mental illnesses. Due to limited funding, some counties are unable to provide conservatorship for the most vulnerable individuals if there are not resources to manage that can cover county costs. This leaves the poorest and most needy completely unprotected and at risk of abuse and exploitation. A stronger Public Guardian could address many of the problems created when professional conservators handle cases as a means of making money, a situation that has raised national attention through news coverage of egregious cases of exploitation. As a co-sponsor of the California Association of Public Administrators, Public Guardians, and Public Conservators’ budget request for $200 million in ongoing state General Fund dollars, CEJC urges others to send their support before the May 4 Senate Budget Hearing. Letters can be sent via email to: The Honorable Chairperson Caroline Menjivar and Members Senate Budget Subcommittee #3 Via email: SBUD.Committee@senate.ca.gov EDJCC UpdateThe Elder and Disability Justice Coordinating Council (EDJCC) held its second meeting of the year on June 20, 2023. Highlights of the event included presentations of three case studies that illustrated systemic barriers or challenges that frontline service providers encounter in handling elder abuse cases.
Chairs of the EDJCC's three workgroups also provided updates of their work. They are:
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New! Opportunity to Comment on Proposed Update to Older Americans Act RegulationsThe federal Administration for Community Living (ACL) has announced the first comprehensive update to the Older Americans Act regulations since 1988. The proposed updates include new definitions, guidance on enhanced coordination, and deletions of obsolete language and provisions. As described in the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR), the “changes advance the policy goals of the Older Americans Act as articulated by Congress, including equity in service delivery, accountability for funds expended, and clarity of administration for the ACL and its grantees,” with the goal of improving services and benefits for older Americans, with special emphasis on those with the highest economic and social needs. For CEJC’s recommendations for elder justice actions at the federal level, see our Elder Justice Blueprint. Written comments on the proposed changes will be accepted through August 15, 2023 and can be made following the instructions at http://www.regulations.gov or sent by U.S. mail to:
Administration on Aging, Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Attention: ACL–AA17–P, 330 C Street SW, Washington, DC 20201. New! Residents' Rights Upheld by Supreme CourtThe rights of nursing home residents were affirmed in the Supreme Court’s June decision that residents in Medicaid-funded facilities have the right to sue when their rights under the Federal Nursing Home Reform Act of 1987 (FNHRA) are violated. As reported by The National Consumer Voice for Long-Term Care, the decision stemmed from a complaint that an Indiana nursing home resident was illegally sedated and then wrongfully discharged. A lower court ruled that the resident could not sue because FNHRA did not grant residents a private right of action. That decision was overturned upon appeal by the Seventh Circuit Court and later upheld by the Supreme Court.
Show Your Support for the Elder Justice Reauthorization and Modernization Act (EJA) of 2023Advocacy is needed now to build support for the recently released EJA. Citing the prevalence of elder and disability abuse and exploitation in the U.S., leaders in Congress from both houses joined in support of the reauthorization bill. Co-sponsors include House Ways & Means Committee Ranking Member Richard E. Neal (D-MA), Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR), Senate Special Committee on Aging Chairman Bob Casey (D-PA), and Co-Chair of the House Elder Justice Caucus Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR). Along with reauthorizing the EJA, the legislation commits significant new funding for Adult Protective Services ($1.9 billion) and the Long-Term Care Ombudsman ($232.5 million). It also funds three new programs: $500 million to connect victims with legal services and create medical-legal partnerships, $250 million to address social isolation and loneliness, and $1.6 billion to recruit and retain care providers in post-acute and long-term care settings. A summary and text of the bill can be found on the Ways and Means Committee website. Reach out to ask your Representatives to sign-on by clicking this link. |
