Hello, this is State Senator Paul Bailey with this week’s capitol update. The General Assembly is now at the midpoint of our 2019 legislative session and we’re moving at full steam.

Senate Committees work diligently this week in advance several bills to continue the General Assembly’s ongoing efforts to protect the elderly and vulnerable adults.

Senate Bill 1039, which was approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee this week increases penalties for the most dangerous crimes involving elder abuse. It is hard to believe anyone would harm senior citizens or a person with disabilities. It’s even harder to believe when these injuries are inflicted by a family member or a caregiver.

However, according to the US Bureau of Justice Statistics, more than 9% of seniors nationwide will experience some type of abuse, and these statistics reflect only the crimes reported, which is why elder abuse is called the silent crisis.

The Senate Judiciary Committee also approval legislation this week to create an Elder Task Force. Senate Bill 199 calls for the task force to see what further improvements can be made to the Tennessee adult Protection Act to keep vulnerable adults safe from financial exploitation. Like physical abuse of the elderly, financial exploitation is believed to be substantially underreported.

Hopefully, this task force will strengthen efforts made by the General Assembly to further identify gaps that leave our seniors vulnerable to those who would take advantage of them financially.

Other legislation that aims to provide aid to elderly adults includes a bill seeking to more effectively address Alzheimer’s disease and its impact on Tennesseans.

Senate Bill 28 creates the state’s Alzheimer’s disease and related Dementia Advisory Council to continually assess and address the status of the disease in the state of Tennessee. Approximately 120,000 Tennesseans suffer with this disease, and Tennessee ranks fourth in the nation for Alzheimer related deaths.

This means that this disease is touch almost every Tennessee and, in some capacity,, in addition to the effects it has on patients and families, the disease high rate of prevalence also means increased cost for treatment, which is estimated at $1 billion in Tennessee.

This is a devastating disease that has affected families across the state. My hope is that the council will find effective ways to provide support to those who are suffering and their families.

As we move into the second half of the legislative session, I hope that you will feel free to contact me regarding any issue before us, or if you need help with a state related matter. And until next time, always remember to be nice and kind to someone. And this is Paul Bailey with your capitol update.