Title
Recognizing June 15, 2022 as World Elder Abuse Awareness Day, and further recognizing June 16, 2022, as Elder Abuse Awareness Day in the City of Philadelphia.
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WHEREAS, The United Nations General Assembly designated June 15th as World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. World Elder Abuse Day represents the one day in the year when the entire world voices its opposition to the abuse and suffering inflicted to some of our older generations; and
WHEREAS, Virtually all countries expect to see substantial growth in the aging population, and occurrences of elder abuse can be expected to grow with it; and
WHEREAS, Elder abuse is a global social issue that affects the health and human rights of millions of members of the aging population around the world, and an issue which deserves the attention of the international and local Philadelphia community; and
WHEREAS, Elder abuse significantly undermines the health of the aging population despite being under-identified and under-reported; and
WHEREAS, Elder abuse can be defined as "a single, or repeated act, or lack of appropriate action, occurring within any relationship where there is an expectation of trust, which causes harm or distress to an older person"; and
WHEREAS, Each year an estimated five million older Americans are abused, neglected, or exploited and the direct medical costs of injuries and care related to elder abuse exceed $5 billion a year in the U.S.; and
WHEREAS, Elder abuse can take various forms, such as physical, emotional, sexual, or financial exploitation. It can also be the result of intentional or unintentional neglect and underreporting despite being widespread. Increasing social support would make it easier for those who experience abuse to report it; and
WHEREAS, Philadelphia is home to more than 220,000 people over the age of 65, making up 14% of our City's population. Of those older Philadelphians, 47,969-18%--live at or below the federal poverty level; and
WHEREAS, The City of Phila...
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