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Elderly in California at Risk of Abuse from In-Home Caregivers

More and more members of California’s senior population are choosing in-home care instead of admission into a residential facility.  Caregivers can help elderly citizens with routine activities, including bathing and dressing themselves.  However, many of these people may be at risk of abuse from in-home caregivers because the state does not regulate them.

According to a report released this week by the Senate Office of Oversight and Outcomes, California is one of the very few states in the country that does not regulate home caregivers.  The report has many things that should concern California elder abuse lawyers. For instance, the report claims that more than twenty five percent of caregivers who have been accused or convicted of crimes had committed offenses earlier too.  California does a terrible job of regulating in-home caregivers by conducting background screenings and verification checks on them.

Several cases of elder abuse and fraud involving caregivers are coming to light.  In one daring instance, a woman with several convictions to her credit secured a job as an in-home caregiver through a classified ad placed by an elderly lady.  The woman soon took over the client’s finances, charging the client rent, buying cars on the woman’s bank accounts, and finally, even putting the woman’s house up for sale.  She was finally arrested after the victims’ relatives caught on to was happening.

The problem is that in California, we don’t have a single database that would allow potential clients to screen potential caregivers before they are employed and help prevent abuse from in-home caregivers.  If there was a single registry that contained information about in-home caregivers, it would allow senior citizens to cross check potential caregiver applicants with the registry, before hiring them.

It’s not only the fact that California has failed to regulate in-home caregivers that bothers Los Angeles elder abuse lawyers.  It’s also the fact that the state has not bothered to invest the time to make citizens aware of their rights under the law.  For instance, many seniors don’t even know that they have the right to a background screen and check on a potential applicant.  The Senate Office of Oversight and Outcomes report is calling for a public awareness and education campaign that will let senior citizens know that they have rights to a background check by the California Department of Justice, when they are in the process of hiring a caregiver.  A check like this could weed out people with criminal backgrounds.

In the meantime, if you’re looking out for a caregiver for yourself, or scouting for caregivers for a loved one, it’s important to know that the elderly are the most frequent victims of abuse and fraud.  Personal references from past clients can help you make a decision.  Agencies can also be a good source of finding help, provided that you screen the agency to make sure that there are no complaints filed against it with the Better Business Bureau.  Also be sure that agency has a strong and effective screening process in place.

The Reeves Law Group is a law firm with offices throughout California dedicated exclusively to the representation of personal injury victims, including victims of abuse from in-home caregivers. Please visit our website at trlglaw.com. If you desire to discuss a personal injury matter,  you can reach us at (800) 644-8000 or email us.

The Reeves Law Group is not representing any party in the matters discussed in this posting.

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