BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 718|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 718
Author: Vargas (D)
Amended: 5/24/11
Vote: 21
SENATE HUMAN SERVICES COMMITTEE : 7-0, 04/26/11
AYES: Liu, Emmerson, Berryhill, Hancock, Strickland,
Wright, Yee
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
SUBJECT : Elder abuse: mandated reporting
SOURCE : County of San Diego
DIGEST : This bill allows mandated reporters of elder and
dependent adult abuse to make reports through the Internet,
as specified, and requires a county or long-term care
ombudsman program that chooses to implement this system to
report specified information to the appropriate policy
committees of the Legislature one year after full
implementation. The bill requires the Internet reporting
tool to be developed and implemented in a manner that
ensures the confidentially and security of all information
contained in the reports.
ANALYSIS : Existing law:
1.Under the Elder and Dependent Adult Civil Protection Act,
requires any mandated reporter (defined as any person who
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has assumed the care or custody of an elder or dependent
adult, compensated or not, including administrators,
supervisors, or licensed staff of a public or private
facility that provides care to elder or dependent adults,
elder or dependent adult care custodian, health
practitioner, clergy member, employee of county adult
protective services, or a local law enforcement agency)
who, within the scope of his or her employment or
professional capacity, observes or has knowledge of
physical abuse, abandonment, abduction, isolation,
financial abuse, or neglect, or is told by an elder or
dependent adult, as defined, that he or she has
experienced abuse above, or reasonably suspects abuse, to
report the known or suspected abuse by telephone
immediately, or as soon as practicably possible, and by
written report sent within two working days, to
appropriate parties, as specified below:
A. For abuse that has occurred in a long-term care
facility, except a state developmental center or state
mental health hospital, requires the mandated reporter
to make a report to the local ombudsperson or the
local law enforcement agency.
B. For suspected or alleged abuse occurring in a state
mental hospital or state developmental center,
requires the report to be made to the Department of
Mental Health or the Department of Developmental
Services, or to the local law enforcement agency.
C. For abuse that occurs any place other than what is
described above, requires the report to be made to the
adult protective services agency or the local law
enforcement agency.
1.Requires the local ombudsperson or the local law
enforcement agency to, as soon as practicable, except
immediately in the case of an emergency, report known or
suspected abuse, as specified.
2.Provides that when two or more mandated reporters are
present and have knowledge or reasonably suspect types of
abuse, and are agreed, a Ýsingle] telephone report may be
made and a single Ýwritten] report may be made.
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3.Separately, requires any mandated reporter of suspected
financial abuse of an elder or dependent adult, defined
as all officers and employees of financial institutions,
under prescribed circumstances, to report known or
suspected instance of financial abuse by telephone
immediately, or as soon as practicably possible, and by
written report sent within two working days to the local
adult protective services agency or local law enforcement
agency. If the mandated reporter knows that the elder or
dependent adult resides in a long-term care facility, as
defined, requires the report to be made to the local
ombudsman or local law enforcement agency. Allows joint
reports to be made, similar to #3 above. Sunsets these
particular provisions on January 1, 2013.
4.Requires a telephone report to include the name of the
person making the report, the name and age of the elder
or dependent adult, the present location of the elder or
dependent adult, the names and addresses of family
members or any other adult responsible for the elder or
dependent adult's care, the nature and extent of the
elder or dependent adult's condition, the date of the
incident, and any other information including information
that led the person to suspect abuse, as requested by the
agency receiving the report.
5.Requires written abuse reports to be submitted on forms
adopted by DSS, and requires county adult protective
services agencies and long-term care ombudsman programs
to distribute these forms, and allows the reporting form
to also be used for documenting telephone reports by the
county adult protective services agency, local ombudsman
program, and local law enforcement agencies.
6.Requires the form to contain the following items: the
name, address, telephone number, and occupation of the
reporting person; the name and address of the victim; the
date, time, and place of the incident; other details,
including the reporter's observations and beliefs
concerning the incident; any statement relating to the
incident made by the victim; the name of any individuals
believed to have knowledge of the incident; the name of
the individuals believed to be responsible for the
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incident and their connection to the victim.
7.Requires county adult protective services agencies and
long-term care ombudsman programs to make specified
reports on the written abuse reports it receives.
This bill:
1.Allows mandated reporters to report known or suspected
abuse by Internet, in addition to telephone as current
law allows, and requires an Internet report to contain
the same information elements as a telephone report.
2.Clarifies that the Internet reporting mechanism is
strictly tied to the confidential Internet reporting too.
3.Requires the Internet reporting tool to be developed and
implemented in a manner that ensures the confidentially
and security of all information contained in the reports.
4.Allows a written abuse report that is currently required
as a follow-up to the telephone report to be submitted
through a confidential Internet reporting tool, if the
county or long-term care ombudsman program chooses to
implement such a system. Requires the confidential
Internet reporting tool to contain the same information
elements as the written abuse report, and requires a
county or long-term care ombudsman program that chooses
to implement this system to report specified information
to the appropriate policy committees of the Legislature
one year after full implementation.
5.Makes related and other technical changes.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/23/11)
County of San Diego (source)
AARP
Alzheimer's Association
California District Attorneys Association
California State Association of Counties
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California State Sheriffs' Association
City of Carlsbad Police Department, Investigations Division
San Diego County Sheriff's Department
San Diego County District Attorney
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : The County of San Diego believes
that by allowing mandated reporters the option to file
reports of suspected abuse through a secure electronic Web
referral system, the number of telephone reporters could be
reduced by half, thus reducing wait times for phone
reporting and the number of abandoned calls. The county
notes that the number of callers that hung up while waiting
to report abuse has grown by 50 percent since fiscal year
2007-08.
The San Diego County District Attorney writes that San
Diego County handles approximately 9,000 cases of elder and
dependent adult abuse each year, and that confidential
Internet reporting would give mandated reporters an
additional tool for curtailing abuse of elders and
dependent adults. The San Diego County Sheriff's
Department states that, due to state cuts, deputies are
forced to spend valuable staff time waiting on hold to
report abuse, and such a tool would allow deputies to
fulfill their duties as mandated reporters, while allowing
them to devote their time to other crucial aspects of
public safety.
The California State Association of Counties writes that
this measure would help counties ensure the safety and
financial security of elder Californians and make it easier
for mandated reporters to submit a report of suspected
abuse.
CTW:nl 5/23/11 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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