LaVerne Noble, chair of the city's Senior Citizens Advisory Committee, hopes to develop an action plan to deal with the growing issue of elder abuse in Medicine Hat.

By Alex McCuaig

elder abuse

City committee seeks plan to tackle elder abuse as moratorium placed on victims of crime fund

Feb 14, 2020 | 4:31 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – The city’s senior citizens advisory committee is hoping to develop an action plan to deal with the issue of elder abuse in the community as a moratorium has been placed on one avenue of provincial funding and an existing grant is set to expire.

“(Elder abuse) is not an easy thing to deal with and often a person in that circumstance needs some help,” said LaVerne Noble, chair of the committee. “And we need somebody to provide that help.”

The committee estimates more than 1,500 Medicine Hatters have experienced some form of elder abuse in the past year and local police and social service agencies have reported an increase in incidences.

But the provincial Victims of Crime Fund, which helps fund domestic abuse programs, has had a moratorium placed on accessing the fund by Alberta Justice, according to the seniors committee. The funding crunch for dealing with the issue in the city is compounded by the expiry of a non-renewable existing provincial grant which expires at the end of March.

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Noble said she is hoping some level of government – including the city – will be able to help fund a dedicated caseworker to assist those experiencing elder abuse.

“As a committee, we are concerned about the lack of a caseworker for issues around elder abuse,” said Noble. “There is a number of cases that are occurring – we know that – and we don`t have anyone specifically in place to help someone in that particular circumstance.”

CHAT News was in contact earlier this week with Alberta Justice regarding the moratorium placed on the Victims of Crime Fund and was told someone would get back to us.

As of Friday, they haven`t.

The Victims of Crime Fund derives its revenue from surcharges leveled on summary and indictable criminal convictions. And, unlike many provincial revenue streams, the fund has had issue with having too much money.

The Alberta`s Auditor General in 2016 singled out issues with the funds` management as, “there is also no plan how to appropriately and productively use the fund’s growing accumulated surplus to best meet the needs of Albertans.”

The 2016 auditor general`s report also notes, “The government’s and department’s current budget process treats the fund like any other generally funded program even though it is self-financing and has its own independent funding source.”

The auditor general`s recommendation was to develop an effective way to deal with the Victim of Crimes Fund surplus and publicly report on a plan for the fund.

The 2019 provincial budget notes a decrease in the fund from $43 million in this fiscal year to $28 million by the end of the 2022-2023 fiscal year.