California Elder Justice Coalition (CEJC)
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Elder Justice Viewpoints

A*TEAM Switches into Fast-track Mode to Stop Fraud, Revealing System Shortfalls and Opportunities

8/30/2022

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By Carol Sewell


 
Elder Fraud and exploitation are among the most difficult crimes to resolve, and it’s a rare occurrence that the fraud is stopped before it’s carried out. Briefly transforming itself into a rapid response team to stop a crime in progress, CEJC’s A*Team recently showed how it could be done.


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Reacting to the Supreme Court's Decision on Reproductive Rights

6/30/2022

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By Lisa Nerenberg 

​The sucker punch of last week's Supreme Court's decision still has me reeling. It also has me thinking about how to channel my outrage. It's clear that Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization isn't just about abortion. Justice Thomas's chilling concurring opinion makes it likely that other deeply personal choices may come next. Older adults are at especially high risk.

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Undue Influence and the Law

1/3/2022

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By Steven Hassan 
​Forty-five years ago, I left the Moonies—a far-right authoritarian cult—and ever since, my career has been dedicated to stopping destructive cults and spreading awareness about undue influence. In my decades of activism, I have come to understand how social psychology and the law are connected.

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Addressing Grief in Elder Mediations

11/29/2021

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BY Dana L. Curtis, Attorney and Mediator

​​I believe loss, or fear of loss, and grief, or anticipatory grief, are present in most mediations. But in elder and adult family cases, they often exist at the heart of the conflict. ​​By grief, I am referring to emotional experience in response to significant loss of any kind.

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In defense of guardians: responding to "i care a lot"

4/23/2021

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​One of the greatest frustrations for those working with elder abuse victims is standing idly by when abuse is occurring or imminent  and not being able to stop it. It’s not for lack of caring. Sometimes, even the most skilled and well-intentioned service providers don’t have the authority they need to do what needs doing. ​

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COVID, Elder Justice, and Advance Directives

11/15/2020

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COVID-19 has forced us to face the fact that in mere days or hours we can go from autonomous, free-acting agents to having strangers become the guardians of our bodies and selves. These strangers may be called upon to judge the value of our lives against those of others as they triage scarce resources or to predict our quality of life against the potential risks and rewards of treatments. The sudden annihilating onset of the disease denies many the chance to choose for themselves how they want to spend their final hours and with whom. It separates patients from loved ones, depriving both sides of mutual comfort, reassurance, and the easing of fears and suffering. ​

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World Elder Abuse Awareness Day: Hope Springs Eternal

6/1/2020

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What began as a small gathering at the United Nations in 2006 has evolved into a multicultural, multilingual movement redefining the meaning of collective power for a world audience. World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD) has helped people understand what elder abuse is, acknowledge the importance of human and civil rights, and recognize the need for research, education, advocacy, and policy development. ​WEAAD brings together individuals, communities and organizations to raise awareness and to honour, respect, and celebrate the strength and resilience of older people. Now, on its 15th anniversary, WEAAD continues to provide a platform for voices to be heard, listened to and acted on. ​
WEAAD is dedicated to older people who have charted paths, built communities, contributed to society and to all generations. ​The pandemic may have changed the world, but people still have the power to cope with adversity and to emerge stronger, more resilient, more thoughtful and giving.
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Health Justice & Public Health in the Age of COVID-19

4/8/2020

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​With the COVID-19 epidemic spreading across the globe, people everywhere are getting a crash course in public health. Terms like “flattening the curve” and “herd immunity” are daily being added to our vocabularies. Since its beginnings during a cholera epidemic in the 1850s in London, the field of public health has evolved dramatically, yet some of the advances that are particularly germane to COVID-19 are not getting much attention. That includes public health’s focus on social justice.

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An Ecological Model of Elder Justice

12/30/2019

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​In the thirty-something years I’ve worked in the field of elder abuse prevention, I’ve seen abuse framed and re-framed as a medical syndrome, a caregiving issue, domestic violence, and a public health epidemic. The Elder Justice Act (EJA), enacted in 2010, enshrined abuse as a matter of social justice and individual rights. Although the new frame has been widely embraced, the EJA is narrowly focused and fails to address the myriad other threats (besides abuse) to older Americans’ rights. I wrote Elder Justice, Ageism, and Elder Abuse (Springer, 2019) to explore these threats and what our field can do about them.
  1. ... the ecological model of elder justice addresses threats to individual rights, including such fundamental rights as privacy and due process, as well as rights pertaining to special groups. Users of long-term services and supports, for example, have rights as consumers, and those with disabilities have rights protected under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Other groups with special rights include crime victims, immigrants, workers, nursing home residents, and jail and prison inmates. 

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Calling for a U.N. Convention on the Rights of Older People

5/28/2019

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The United Nations General Assembly established the Open-Ended Working Group on Ageing (OEWGA) in 2010 with a mandate to consider the existing international framework for the human rights of older persons and identify possible gaps and how best to address them. This included exploring the feasibility of new “instruments and measures,” which range from aspirational memos to binding U.N. conventions (a type of treaty).  The goal is to strengthen the protection of human rights of older persons.
...​the group has focused on particular human rights topics as they apply to older persons, including equality and non-discrimination; violence, neglect and abuse; autonomy and independence; long-term and palliative care; and social protection and social security
The first session of the OEWGA took place on February 15, 2011. In subsequent annual sessions the group has focused on particular human rights topics as they apply to older persons, including equality and non-discrimination; violence, neglect and abuse; autonomy and independence; long-term and palliative care; and social protection and social security. Future topics will likely include access to justice, health care, and housing. Because these subjects are viewed as overlapping and interdependent, the deliberations are not siloed.

​By far, the most repeatedly debated issue is whether there is a need for a specialized, binding convention on the rights of older persons. Virtually every participating non-governmental organization (NGO) and many nations have argued that existing human rights instruments fail to recognize older persons as clear rights holders in all aspects of human rights laws. Other nations, including the U.S., argue that existing instruments cover older persons adequately and that all that is needed is better implementation strategies.

Participation does not require you to stick your head out. You can observe or put your name in the cue to deliver comments (called “interventions”)...You will find tremendous professional benefit from participating, both in terms of learning about U.N. processes and experiencing the diversity of international aging advocacy.
Which way the pendulum swings in this debate will depend to a large extent on NGOs that advocate for or serve older persons. NGOs have played a major role in the Working Group’s discussions and can participate via a fairly simple credentialing process. The process harkens back to the creation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the success of which depended heavily on the voice of NGOs. NGOs overwhelmingly favor a convention but lack the critical mass necessary to make U.N. member states heed their call.

Numbers really do count. There are countless U.S. NGOs that would never consider playing a role in U.N. affairs, let alone even try to understand the working of such a complex organization. However, it is easier than you think. Participating organizations have developed materials that explain the issues and can assist in learning U.N. procedures (see below). Becoming familiar with them will well equip you to be an expert advocate for a convention. The next step is to have your organization accredited to attend future meetings. The Working Group posts instructions. Accreditation is granted to organizations (not individuals) and only have to be accredited once. The application asks for information about organizations' competence and the relevance of their activities to OEWGA's work. If your group serves or advocates for elders, you probably qualify. The UN Secretariat reviews applications using standardized criteria, which include equitable geographic distribution. The OEWGA, by motion and vote, makes accreditation final. If approved, your organization can register up to five representatives to OEWGA meetings.

Participation does not require you to stick your head out. You can observe or put your name in the cue to deliver comments (called “interventions”). Written submissions are also usually invited on specific topics that the Working Group plans to address.
You will find tremendous professional benefit from participating, both in terms of learning about U.N. processes and experiencing the diversity of international aging advocacy. The meetings provide the opportunity to hear from and meet representatives from NGOs around the world and make new contacts with both U.S. and international advocates and leaders. Yes, there is the expense of traveling to and visiting New York, but if that challenge can be met, your organization can make a difference. As Woody Allen has said: 80 percent of success is showing up.

​And yes, at the U.N., they do spell “Ageing” with an “e"!
Resources
  • The Global Alliance for the Rights of Older Persons was established in 2011 to strengthen the rights and voice of older people globally. It is a collaboration of nine organizations:
    • International Network for the Prevention of Elder Abuse (INPEA)
    • International Longevity Centre (ILC) Global Alliance
    • International Federation on Ageing (IFA)
    • International Association of Homes and Services for the Ageing (IAHSA) 
    • International Association of Gerontology and Geriatrics (IAGG) –
    • HelpAge International
    • AGE Platform Europe 
    • Age UK 
    • AARP 
  • A new convention on the rights of older people: a concrete proposal
  • Strengthening Older Peoples Rights: Toward a Convention 
  • Normative Standards in International Human Rights Law in Relation to Older Persons - Analytical Outcome Paper (August 2012)
  • Report of the Independent Expert on the Enjoyment of all Human Rights by Older Persons (September 2016)
  • Materials submitted at annual OEWGA meetings

About the Author

Charles P. Sabatino

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​The author is director of the American Bar Association Commission on Law and Aging which has participated as an accredited NGO in the meetings of U.N Open-Ended Working Group on Ageing since 2012. ​He specializes in health law, long-term care planning, and improving access to legal services for older adults. He is an adjunct professor in elder law  at Georgetown University Law Center and a past president of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys.

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  • Home
  • About Us
    • Our Team
    • Our Core Values
    • Our Supporters
    • Contact Us
  • Policy
    • 2022 Elder Justice Legislative Update
    • Advocacy
    • Policy Development
    • A*TEAM
  • Learn
    • Toolkits >
      • Adult Protective Services
      • Long Term Care Facilities
      • Undue Influence
      • Elder Homelessness
      • Financial Crime
      • Victims' Rights and Services
      • International
      • Opioid Crisis
      • Restorative Approaches to Elder Abuse
    • Webinars and Events
    • CEJC Publications >
      • 2023 Blueprint
    • Awareness Snapshots
    • Blog: Elder Justice Viewpoints
  • Join Us
    • Renew
    • Donate
  • NNSEJC
    • Who We Are
    • Joining NNSEJC
    • More On State/Tribal Coalitions