Financial Elder Abuse: New York State Prevalence, Interventions, & Future Directions

Abstract

Millions of older adults living in the United States are victims of elder abuse and financial exploitation is the most common form of abuse. Additionally, the adult population age 65 and older is projected to more than double by 2060 (Colby & Ortman, 2015) which will increase the likelihood of elder abuse. New York State has a substantial older adult population, was the focus of largest and most comprehensive elder abuse prevalence study, and utilizes multiple forms of financial abuse interventions including the widely supported use of multidisciplinary teams. Thus, the purpose of this thesis is to describe the prevalence and current interventions pertaining to the issue of financial elder abuse in New York State.