Facts About Elder Abuse

No one knows precisely how many older Americans are being abused, neglected or exploited. Definitions of elder abuse vary. This tends to hide the true dimensions of the problem. There is no national clearinghouse where data is collected and compared. State statistics vary widely in what they report and how.

The following facts come from the National Center on Elder Abuse and draw data from a number of studies.

How Many Older Americans Have Experienced Elder Abuse?

  • An estimated one to two million Americans age 65 or older have been injured, exploited or otherwise mistreated by someone on whom they depended for care or protection.

  • It is estimated that for every one case of elder abuse, neglect, exploitation or self-neglect reported to authorities, about five more go unreported.

    • It is estimated that only one out of every 25 cases of financial exploitation is reported. This suggests there may be at least 5 million financial abuse victims each year.

    • In domestic settings, it is estimated that only one in 14 incidents of elder abuse come to the attention of the authorities.

Signs of Elder Abuse