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The article offers information related to preventing mistreatment, abuse, and neglect among elderly and disabled people in the U.S. Topics discussed include the court case involving Jean Kasem who was sued for neglecting to provide adequate medical care to his husband Casey Kasem, the money paid pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson in settlement and fines due to inappropriate marketing, and the awareness of the side effects of antipsychotic drugs for elderly.

The article discusses the effects of the U.S. Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996 on adult protective services. It mentions the National Adult Protective Services' (NAPSA) issuance of a technical assistance brief concerning management of protected health information under HIPAA. It cites that the law also stated that psychotherapy should not be revealed as part of the overall display of patient medical records and fiscal exploitation of senior adults.

The article focuses on the performance of regulatory agencies in solving the problems associated with inadequate nursing facitilies in California. Topics discussed include the financial burden faced by people and families in acquiring nursing home care, the lack of health care planning, and the nursing home bill of rights for residents.

This section offers news briefs on the victimization of the elderly and disabled in the U.S. as of July 2015. It presents an advisory from the Consumer Finance Protection Board (CFPB) warning elders and caregivers about lumpsum advances on pension payments. It reports the felony charges filed by California Attorney General Kamala Harris against Valley Springs Manor owner and administrator Herminigilda Noveda Manuel and Edgar Babael, and the launch of the Department of Justice's (DOJ) web site.

This section offers news briefs related to the abuse of the elderly and disabled as of September 2013. The United Nations (UN) marks the World Elder Abuse Awareness Day this year with a special event held at UN Headquarters and the U.S. Mission to the UN in New York on June 14, 2013 with topics including "Governmental and UN Perspectives," and "NGO Perspectives and Perceptions." Harper Lee, 87-year-old author of "To Kill a Mockingbird" sued her literary agent Samuel Pinkus in May 2013.

The article offers information on a major decision handed down by Connecticut on the rights of conservatees. It states that under California's guardianship statute, the Lantris-Petris-Short Act (LPS), a gravely disabled mentally ill person can be placed under conservatorship. The article presents the Connecticut's Gross case, where Daniel Gross was hospitalized in New York for treatment of a leg infection.

The article discusses a court case in which Disability Advocates Inc. (DAI), a part of New York's Protection and Advocacy (P&A) system, sued the Governor of New York and the state's Departments of health and mental health amongst others claiming that New York's mental health system did not satisfy prescribed standards. The District Court for the Eastern District of new York ordered changes in New York state's mental health system. The ruling was reversed by the Second Circuit on appeal.

The article discusses the California Court of Appeal decisions which examined elder abuse issues and showed the vital importance of filing claims promptly. In one case, Elenice S. Dito, who was charged with financial elder abuse of her husband in an earlier petition, was not entitled to receive a share of her deceased husband's estate as an omitted spouse. The case against Prime Healthcare Paradise Valley LLC, who was charged with elder abuse and wrongful death, was dismissed by the court.

The article explains Elder Safety Zones and their role in rendering legal protection from sex offenders. Topics discussed include the concept originated in a municipal ordinance imposed in Montville, Connecticut on October 10, 2012, which banned sex offenders from appearing at places where senior adults gather, concerns over lack of training and equipment among adult protective service staffers in managing cases concerning mental illness, and An Act Concerning Senior Safety Zones.

The article discusses rating systems applied by the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and Families for Better Care organization for the care of elderly residents in nursing homes. Data from the Kaiser Health Foundation and the Office of State Long-Term Care Ombudsman are noted to have been used in the evaluations. The use of nursing home cameras by families is also discussed along with the inadequacies in the advance directive issued by the late radio host Casey Kasem.

This section offers news briefs related to elder abuse cases as of September 2013. Anthony D. Marshall, son of Brooke Astor, was incarcerated in June 2013 following his conviction in 2009 for 14 counts of financially victimizing Mrs. Astor. Colorado adopted Senate Bill 13-111 pertaining to elder abuse law signed by the governor on May 16, 2013. Alabama expands measures of Alabama's Elders Act (May 2013).

The article discusses the abuse problems of the LGBT senior community in long-term care facilities and the efforts to address the discrimination. These efforts include research activities and documentary films to raise public awareness, educational seminars and sensitivity training to provide support and resources to LGBT caregivers, and stricter enforcement of federal laws which protect residents of nursing homes and assisted living facilities.

The article discusses the inappropriate use of antipsychotics in nursing homes to restrain elderly people with dementia which was addressed in a Senate Special Committee on Aging hearing. The article cites various reports on the issue. Recommendations made by the California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform (CANHR) to California's department of public health (DPH) to curb chemical restraint in California's nursing homes have been listed.

The article discusses cases involving nursing home and residential facility liability in the U.S. In general, states are not liable for failure to protect citizens' interests in bodily security, according to the Ninth Circuit, in the case Campbell vs. State of Washington Department of Social and Health Services. The case Shotts vs. OP Winter Haven Inc. highlights the issue of nursing home arbitration in Florida. A nursing home wrongful death neglect case in West Virginia is mentioned.

The article offers a look at several issues of interest to advocates for the elderly and disabled in the U.S. The 2008 National Crime Victimization Survey was released by the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics. A civil-rights lawsuit brought by an injured nursing home resident under the Federal Nursing Home Reform Amendments was not dismissed by the District Court for the Northern District of New York. An Individual-at-Risk restraining order was enacted in Wisconsin in 2006.

This section offers news briefs on laws for elderly and disabled protection in the U.S. as of March 2011. President Barack Obama ratified the Elder and Justice Act (EJA) on March 23 as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The president signed into law the CAPTA Reauthorization Act of 2010, which amends laws related to child abuse and domestic violence. The Preventing Affinity Scams for Seniors (PASS) Act of 2010 was submitted to the House of Representatives on September 29, 2010.

The article focuses on the per curiam decision of the U.S. Supreme Court on February 21, 2012, reversing the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals, which had found that nursing homes' mandatory arbitration agreements covering personal injury or wrongful death claims against nursing homes are excessive.

The article reviews the article "The Medico-legal Aspects of Dementia-Driven Sexual Abuse in Nursing Homes," by Lisa Tripp and the webinar titled Medical Aspects of Abuse and Neglect, by Dr. Laura Mosqueda.

The article provides information on the activities of the 112th U.S. Congress and federal agencies from April 16, 2011 through August 15, 2011. The Crime Victims Fund Preservation Act of 2011, which would exclude receipts and disbursements of the Crime Victims Fund, has been introduced on April 15, 2011. The Nursing Home Patient Protection and Standards Act of 2011, which would improve oversight of nursing facilities, has been introduced on July 13, 2011.

The article discusses the reported occurrence of involuntary and abusive transfers and discharges from nursing homes in the U.S. according to the author. Topics covered include the highlights of the electronic mail or email released by the National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care on February 25, 2016, the coverage of the National Public Radio (NPR) on the abusive evictions in nursing homes, and the highlights of the abusive discharge case of California resident Bruce Anderson.

The article presents developments in cases relating to the victimization of the elderly and disabled in the U.S. In the case, Gross v. Rell, filed in the Connecticut on April 3, 2012, the Second Circuit Court adopted the rules of immunity in the federal context and ruled that the nursing home is not entitled to quasi-judicial immunity. In December 2009, Anthony Marshall, son of Brooke Astor, was sentenced to one-to-three-years' imprisonment on charges of financial elder abuse.