The main agency to report elder abuse to is often Adult Protective Services (APS). APS investigates reports of abuse, neglect, and financial exploitation involving older adults, especially when abuse happens in the community or at home.
APS may also handle some reports involving older adults in care facilities, but nursing home abuse complaints often involve other agencies, too. Depending on the situation, families may need to contact the long-term care ombudsman, the state health department, a licensing agency, or law enforcement.
If someone is in immediate danger, call 911 right away. This includes serious injuries, sexual abuse, physical violence, threats, or any situation where an older adult may need urgent help.
Reporting to the right agency can ensure your loved one gets help sooner and prevents further harm.
Why Reporting Elder Abuse Matters
Elder abuse is often underreported, especially when victims are afraid, isolated, dependent on a caregiver, or unable to speak up for themselves.
Only about 1 in 24 cases of elder abuse are ever reported to authorities, according to the National Council on Aging.
Reporting a concern allows trained agencies to investigate, protect the older adult, and determine what happened. Even if you are not completely sure abuse occurred, speaking up can help stop further harm.
Understanding What Constitutes Elder Abuse
Elder abuse includes harm, neglect, or exploitation of an older adult. It can happen at home, in assisted living, or in a nursing home. In care facilities, abuse is not always physical. It can also involve poor supervision, ignored medical needs, unsafe conditions, or staff failing to provide basic care.
Common types of elder abuse include:
- Emotional abuse: Threats, humiliation, isolation, intimidation, or verbal attacks
- Financial exploitation: Theft, scams, coercion, or misuse of an older adult’s money or property
- Neglect: Failure to provide food, water, hygiene, medication, supervision, or medical care
- Physical abuse: Hitting, pushing, rough handling, improper restraint, or other force that causes harm
- Sexual abuse: Any sexual contact or behavior involving an older adult without consent
Elder abuse is not always obvious at first. If something seems wrong, reporting your concern can help the right agency investigate and protect your loved one.
What Agency Do You Turn in Elder Abuse or Neglect
If you suspect elder abuse or neglect, APS is often the main agency to contact. APS investigates reports of abuse, neglect, and financial exploitation involving older adults and vulnerable adults in most states.
If someone is in immediate danger, call 911 first. This includes serious injuries, physical violence, sexual abuse, threats, or any crime in progress.
The right agency depends on where the abuse happened and what kind of help is needed:
- Adult Protective Services (APS): Handles many non-emergency reports of elder abuse, neglect, and financial exploitation
- Law enforcement or 911: Responds to immediate danger, physical violence, sexual abuse, theft, or other crimes
- Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program: Helps with complaints involving nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and other long-term care settings
- State health department or licensing agency: Investigates care facility violations, unsafe conditions, and misconduct by licensed providers
- Medicaid Fraud Control Unit: May investigate abuse, neglect, or fraud involving Medicaid-funded care
Reporting to the right agency can help your loved one get help sooner and prevent further harm.
When to Hire a Nursing Home Lawyer
A nursing home abuse agency can investigate complaints, but it usually cannot help your family seek compensation. If your loved one was seriously harmed, ignored, or injured after repeated complaints, it may be time to contact a nursing home lawyer.
The right agency to report nursing home abuse may be able to get the incident documented, but they also have limits. A lawyer can help your family investigate what happened and determine if the facility can be held accountable through a nursing home lawsuit.
Signs that legal help may be needed include:
- Bedsores that go untreated
- Dehydration or malnutrition
- Falls that should have been prevented
- Medication errors
- Sudden health changes
- Unexplained injuries
- Wrongful death
“If your loved one has experienced any of these injuries, it could mean the nursing home failed in its legal duty to protect them. These are usually preventable harms, and families have every right to demand answers.”
– Ricky LeBlanc, Nursing Home Lawyer at Sokolove Law
A nursing home lawyer can help your family get answers and pursue accountability. Get a free case review right now to see if a top lawyer can fight for your family.
Fight back against nursing home abuse and neglect — start now with a free case review.
Start My Free Case Reviewor call (855) 264-6310
Reporting Abuse in Nursing Homes or Assisted Living Facilities
To report abuse in a nursing home or assisted living facility, start with the agency that matches the situation. Call 911 if a resident is in immediate danger. For non-emergency concerns, reports may go to the Long-Term Care Ombudsman Program, Adult Protective Services, or the state agency that oversees care facilities.
After a report is filed, the agency usually reviews the complaint to decide how urgent it is. Depending on the situation, investigators may contact the resident or family, interview staff, inspect the facility, review medical records, or refer the case to law enforcement.
If the report shows a serious care problem, the facility may be required to fix the issue, submit a correction plan, face penalties, or undergo follow-up monitoring. If nursing home abuse or neglect caused serious harm, some families may also be able to seek compensation through a lawsuit.
Get Help After Reporting Elder Abuse
Reporting elder abuse is an important first step, but it may not give your family the full answers you need. Agencies can investigate complaints and require facilities to fix care problems, but they do not pursue compensation for families.
If your loved one was harmed in a nursing home or assisted living facility, the Nursing Home Abuse Center can help you understand your legal options. Our team can review what happened, identify signs of abuse or neglect, and connect you with legal help if the facility may be responsible.
Call us at (855) 264-6310 or get a free case review now. You may be able to seek compensation for medical bills, pain and suffering, and more.
