More Elder Abuse Incidents Reported By PA News

Elder abuse can come in many different forms, including financial, emotional, sexual, and physical.  Recently, a Hanover Township woman has come under investigation for physical abuse and subsequent death of her 78-year-old aunt.  According to reports, the woman under investigation threw porcelain figurines at her aunt's head and face, causing the elderly woman significant and fatal damage to her head.  To read more about the report, please visit the original news source at The Times-Tribune here.

Attorney Doug Stoehr is a personal injury lawyer who takes nursing home abuse and neglect cases in the western and central Pennsylvania areas.  He takes cases in Blair and the seven surrounding counties, and his practice is based in Altoona, PA.  For more information on his firm, please call his office at 814-946-4100 or visit his website at http://www.stoehrlaw.com.

Elder Abuse Case in Eastern PA

Instances of elder abuse are not uncommon in Pennsylvania, which has a large aging population.  Although most people think of physical violence when they hear the term "elder abuse", the term also actually encompasses financial, emotional, and sexual abuse, as well as neglect.  The Bucks County Courier Times recently covered an article highlighting a case of elder abuse in the county.  According to the article, the reports of elder abuse in the area have tripled since 2000.  The PA Secretary of Aging also reported that Pennsylvania seniors were scammed out of $2.5 million in the past year. 

Also noted within the Courier Times article, " In 2011-12, Pennsylvania Area Agencies on Aging received 18,454 reports of abuse, up from 18,129 in 2010-11. A few years ago, in 2006-07, the state reported 11,962 cases of abuse. According to the most recent state data, the three most common types of abuse experienced by older Pennsylvanians are self neglect, 41.7 percent; caregiver neglect, 24.7 percent; and financial abuse, 16.2 percent."

Attorney Doug Stoehr is a personal injury lawyer who takes nursing home abuse and neglect cases in the western and central Pennsylvania areas.  He takes cases in Blair and the seven surrounding counties, and his practice is based in Altoona, PA.  For more information on his firm, please call his office at 814-946-4100 or visit his website at http://www.stoehrlaw.com.

To access Pennsylvania’s resource page for elder abuse, please click this link.

To read more from the original Bucks County Courier Times article, please click here. 

Financial Elder Abuse Is Real!

It is one thing to hear about financial elder abuse stories, but it is another to read about them hitting so close to home! Recently, a Doylestown, PA area bank manager was accused of scamming over $350,000 from seniors who frequented his bank over a course of ten years.  When asked by a judge what he had purchased with the money, the man denied buying anything large or memorable.  Want to know more? Find the original article here.  There have also been several other cases in the Pennsylvania area with similar details and features.  One lesson to learn from these stories is to keep a close eye on your finances to make sure all your balances add up no money is being incorrectly removed from your accounts. 

Attorney Doug Stoehr is a personal injury lawyer who takes claims for elderly clients who have been abused financially, physically, emotionally, or sexually.  For more information on his Altoona, PA area practice, please visit his website athttp://www.stoehrlaw.com or call his firm at814-946-4100.

Nursing Home Buyouts Becoming More Common

It appears that many Pennsylvania nursing homes have gone out of business or have been sold in the past few years.  Recently, a Montgomery County nursing home was sold for $41 million to a large, regional healthcare agency.  Prior to this purchase, the nursing home had recently been run by the county, which had been cited in recent years as being a significant financial drain.  Many counties in Pennsylvania used to run their own nursing homes, but the trend has shifted towards selling their facilities to outside organizations.  As a part of this particular buyout, the new health care group agreed to keep all current employees who wished to stay at their current salary and seniority levels.

If you or a loved one are in a nursing home that is in the middle of being purchased by another organization, you should take care to be aware of any changes in staffing or policies that might affect the care that your family member receives.  Improper care could also lead to elder abuse or neglect, which is a growing problem among Pennsylvania's aging population.  Attorney Doug Stoehr is a personal injury lawyer who takes nursing home abuse and neglect cases in the western and central Pennsylvania areas.  He takes cases in Blair and the seven surrounding counties, and his practice is based in Altoona, PA.  For more information on his firm, please call his office at 814-946-4100 or visit his website at http://www.stoehrlaw.com.       

Pennsylvania has set up a statewide elder abuse hotline, which can be accessed by calling this number: 1-800-490-8505.  The hotline is open 24 hours a day and can be used a tipline to report activity related to abuse, neglect, exploitation, identity theft, or abandonment of an elderly PA resident.  Pennsylvania also has local Area Agencies on Aging that can assist in these situations. 

To read more about the nursing home purchase, please click on the original article here.

NCEA Examines Elder Abuse Nation-Wide

Unknown to many, an organization known as the National Center on Elder Abuse (NCEA), is a branch of the Administration on Aging.  The NCEA has compiled a wealth of information regarding elder abuse across the country and where our country seems to be headed on the topic in the future. Some of the most interesting results of their research can be found below.  I strongly urge you to check out their website at http://www.ncea.aoa.gov/Library/Data/index.aspx for more information and to read the entire compilation!

Here are some interesting pieces of data collected by the NCEA:

• The 2010 US Census recorded both the greatest number and proportion of people 65+ years old in the entire census history.  This amounts to 40.3 million elderly residents.
• By 2050, the population will most likely be 20% comprised of people aged 65 and older.
• Data from the Adult Protective Services (APS) reports an increase in the number of reports of elder abuse in the past several years. They expect that this trend will continue.
• Only about 1 in 14 cases of elder abuse come to the attention of authorities.  Some report this statistic to be as high as 1 in 24 cases. 
• Financial exploitation is the highest self-reported form of elder abuse.  
• The majority of those who engage in elder abuse are family members, at a percentage of about 90% of all reported elder abuse cases. 
• The proportion of abuse of the elderly with disabilities is particularly high, as well as those with dementia and those who live in nursing homes or long-term assisted living facilities.

Attorney Doug Stoehr is a personal injury lawyer serving western and central Pennsylvania.  He takes cases for older Pennsylvanians who have been abused or neglected.  For more information on his Altoona, PA area practice, please call his office at 814-946-4100 or visit his website at http://www.stoehrlaw.com.  Attorney Stoehr takes cases in Blair and the seven surrounding counties.

Financial Scams and the Elderly

Financial abuse and fraud against the elderly appears to be on the rise, especially in Pennsylvania as much of our population ages.  Altoona area attorney Douglas Stoehr has been keeping an eye for this issue and his law firm has compiled a useful group of blog posts that may help you spot the signs of elder financial abuse and how to potentially stop elder financial abuse from occurring in your home. There are also several real-life stories to browse that highlights elder financial abuse in the PA area.

Here are some of the useful resources our blog has highlighted:

Elder Scam: Money Stolen by Family Members
http://altoonainjurylawyer.blogspot.com/2012/09/elder-scam-money-stolen-by-family.html

Financial Fraud and the Elderly
http://altoonainjurylawyer.blogspot.com/2012/11/financial-fraud-and-elderly.html

Elder Financial Abuse in York, PA
http://altoonainjurylawyer.blogspot.com/2012/10/elder-financial-abuse-in-york-pa.html

Protecting Loved Ones from Financial Abuse
http://altoonainjurylawyer.blogspot.com/2012/09/protecting-loved-ones-from-financial.html

Ways to Lighten The Financial Load for Elderly Relatives
http://altoonainjurylawyer.blogspot.com/2013/04/ways-to-lighten-financial-load-for.html

Attorney Doug Stoehr also represents elder abuse victims and their loved ones in the central and western Pennsylvania area.  For more information on his personal injury practice, please click here or call his office at814-946-4100.

Eastern PA Sheriff's Department Gives 911 Cell Phones To Seniors

Check out this article by the Norristown Patch.  It highlights an excellent service by the Sheriff's Department of Montgomery County, in which the county has set a program in which area seniors can receive 911 cell phones.  These cell phones can be used to place emergency calls in the event that they cannot reach another phone.  The general plan is for these phones to be used in cases of elder abuse, residential hazards, or other emergencies.

This is a program that would be beneficial in any area that there are a large number of seniors who are living independently or who might be at high-risk for elder abuse.  This 911 cell phone donation program is one that other counties or organizations in the state should consider implementing as well.

Attorney Doug Stoehr is a personal injury lawyer serving western and central Pennsylvania. He takes cases for older Pennsylvanians who have been abused or neglected.  For more information on his Altoona, PA area practice, please call his office at 814-946-4100 or visit  his website at http://www.stoehrlaw.com.  Attorney Stoehr takes cases in Blair and the seven surrounding counties.