Lawmakers on the State Senate Retirement Committee want to see more study on the problem of elder abuse.
Committee members approved Senate Bill 168. It creates a legislative task force to examine the issue.
Republican State Senator Dave Novstrup is a prime sponsor of the bill. He says the task force needs to examine all the ways seniors could be abused.
Novstrup says in order to tackle the problem lawmakers need to understand the extent of emotional, physical, and financial abuse of the elderly in South Dakota.
“And, I think they need to find the facts and look at the data and then that will decide what we need to do in this area to make it, to hold people accountable that are abusing our elderly and making sure that we are protecting them,” says Novstrup.
Novstrup adds that as baby boomers age the issue becomes even more important. Senate Bill 168 received unanimous approval from the State Senate Retirement Laws Committee. It moves next to the Senate floor.