Where does Georgia Rank for Elder Abuse Protections?

One in five Americans are expected to be 65 or older by 2030 and the percentage of the population in that category is drawing even more attention to elder abuse and what can be done to prevent it.

But some states already fare much better than others when it comes to protections in place. The personal-finance website WalletHub recently released its report on 2018’s States with the Best Elder-Abuse Protections based on a 50-state (plus D.C.) comparison. WalletHub used 14 metrics ranging from shares of elder-abuse, gross-neglect and exploitation complaints to presence of financial elder-abuse laws.

So where did the Peach State match up?

Georgia came in at No. 21. We ranked 22nd for ‘prevelance,’ 19th for ‘resources,’ and 30th for ‘protection.’

From WalletHub:

*     Alaska has the highest total long-term care Ombudsman program funding (per resident aged 65 and older), $10.14, which is 14.9 times higher than in Florida, the state with the lowest at $0.68.

*     The District of Columbia has the most certified volunteer Ombudsmen (per 100,000 residents aged 65 and older), 96, whereas Alabama, Montana, Mississippi, South Dakota, West Virginia and Wyoming have none.

*     Arizona, Pennsylvania and Texas have among the most frequent assisted-living facility inspections, once per year, which is five times more frequent than in California, the state with the least frequent at once every five years.

*     District of Columbia has the highest nursing-homes quality (share of certified nursing-home beds rated 4 or 5 stars), 75.7 percent, which is 2.4 times higher than in Louisiana, the state with the lowest at 31.6 percent.