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Senate of Pennsylvania
Session of 2013 - 2014 Regular Session

MEMORANDUM

Posted: June 17, 2013 04:50 PM
From: Senator Bob Mensch
To: All Senate members
Subject: Update to the Older Adult Protective Services Act (OAPSA)
 
I am introducing legislation to overhaul the Older Adults Protective Services Act (OAPSA), which aims to detect and reduce elder abuse in the Commonwealth as well as provide protective services for Pennsylvanians over 60 years of age.

The Pennsylvania Department of Aging (PDA) administers OAPSA in coordination with the Area Agencies on Aging (AAAs). The department receives mandatory abuse reports and the AAAs conduct the investigations. PDA also ensures that criminal history background checks mandated by OAPSA are processed expeditiously and correctly for employment applicants at facilities.

In addition to revising OAPSA with some consolidation of provisions, my bill will address the rise of the financial exploitation of older Pennsylvanians by providing for financial abuse if it is a loss that results in the inability of an older adult to fund basic necessities or is in excess of $25,000.

The legislation will add physicians, health care providers and financial institutions to the list of mandatory reporters within OAPSA which currently only requires facility employees and administrators report to the department suspected elder abuse.

Perhaps one of the most significant provisions of this bill will be to address the issues created by a state Supreme Court decision in 2003 that deemed the mandatory criminal background checks and prohibitive offenses provisions in OAPSA unconstitutional. Recent Pennsylvania State Police and FBI background checks will be required of all applicants and must be conducted prior to hiring an individual. Anyone convicted of the most egregious offense under the Crimes Codes will be prohibited from employment. Lesser crimes will carry a 10-year ban but a facility may hire an applicant prior to it if the applicant can demonstrate a minimum five-year aggregate work history in care-dependent services, without incident from the date of conviction.

If you have any questions regarding this bill, please contact Geri Sarfert, legislative director, at 7-3110.