The March 8th session was divided into two sections.
First, Prof. Josephine Gittler, director of the National Health Law and Policy Resource Center and colloquium professor, gave an overview of elder abuse and neglect. She discussed reasons why older adults with dementia are susceptible to abuse, including their relative isolation and dependence on others. Prof. Gittler described the role of Adult Protective Services in Iowa and similar agencies in other states and explained that elder abuse has shifted from a civil matter to a criminal matter.
Second, Prof. Katherine Porter, Professor of Law at University of California-Irvine School of Law, discussed financial abuse of the elderly in greater depth. Prof. Porter examined laws designed to protect older adults from financial abuse, and how laws designed to protect the elderly from financial abuse can run afoul of laws designed to protect older adults from discrimination. She explained how the law has attempted to keep up with financially abusive practices in an increasingly complicated financial environment.