Latest news with #AdultProtectiveServices
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Yahoo
Police: Couple withdrew funds from missing disabled adult
ELKHART — An Elkhart couple is accused of spending thousands of dollars belonging to a mentally disabled woman around the time she was reported missing. Debra Collins and Loni Collins are each charged with a count of fraud as a Level 5 felony for allegedly spending money out of an account meant to pay for the care of a 68-year-old special needs adult. They are also charged with theft as a Level 6 felony. Warrants for their arrest were issued May 9 with bond set at $50,000 each. According to court documents: The victim was reported missing on March 10 and the Elkhart Police Department issued an alert seeking information on April 30. An investigator with Adult Protective Services also began looking into her disappearance. Debra Collins had been granted permanent guardianship of the victim in 2010 due to the woman's mental disabilities. Collins was ordered to obtain court approval before spending more than $1,500 of the victim's money or to move house, according to the APS investigator. Debra Collins opened a representative payee account at a bank in August 2020 to deposit the victim's Social Security payments and cover her expenses. The victim was placed in a group home in October 2021 but Collins removed her in July 2022, according to the investigator. The investigator obtained bank records from the start of January to the end of March allegedly showing that Debra Collins withdrew $2,959 from the woman's account and transferred it to an account owned by her husband. The money was allegedly spent at Amazon, Kroger, Walmart and other internet-based vendors. No payments were made to care facilities, group homes or other services that would be connected to the victim, according to the investigator. Loni Collins was questioned and allegedly told investigators that he had not seen the victim in over a year and didn't know where she was living. Debra Collins also allegedly told a bank representative in April that she didn't know where the victim was, after the bank froze the representative payee account. Another witness was interviewed and said that Debra Collins claimed she moved the victim to a different group home, but would not give any further information when asked, according to the investigation.
Indianapolis Star
08-05-2025
- Business
- Indianapolis Star
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As Indiana officials try to rein in spending in the face of a predicted revenue shortfall, advocates fear a behind-the-scenes move to privatize the state's Adult Protective Services program could prevent elderly and at-risk Hoosiers from receiving the help they need. Indiana Family and Social Services Administration confirmed to IndyStar that it has awarded PCG-Indiana Inc. a 3-year contract, estimated at more than $19 million, for the firm to staff and operate Adult Protective Services starting July 1. An award letter released April 30 greenlighted contract negotiations with the company. The contract could contain an option for the state to add three one-year extensions, potentially lengthening the deal to six years. Indiana's Adult Protective Services is responsible for investigating reports of neglect, abuse and exploitation of vulnerable adults and coordinating a response to protect them. Traditionally, FSSA has contracted with the Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys Council 's hub prosecutor offices to operate the program, but those contracts expire on June 30. The new contract takes Adult Protective Services out of the hands of local prosecutors, who for years have complained that Indiana underfunded the program, and puts the program under a subsidiary of Boston-based Public Consulting Group. The parent company, with offices in nearly a dozen states, works with public-sector health, human services and education agencies. PCG-Indiana, the subsidiary, has contracted with Indiana since 2010, providing consulting services related to education, children and social services, and workforce development, according to public records. "Over the next two months, the Division of Aging, will work with PCG-Indiana and the current APS units to establish an APS model for Indiana that is in line with new federal requirements and best practice recommendations," FSSA said in an emailed statement. Public Consulting Group did not respond to a request for comment. Meanwhile, prosecutors and advocates say FSSA hasn't been transparent about the procurement process and what the APS model would look like under a private contractor with a motive to make a profit. "It's been a very opaque discussion that's been going on the state level with regard to what's going on with APS," said H. Kennard Bennett, executive director and senior counsel for the Center for At-Risk Elders, Inc., a lawyer-led nonprofit that provides guardianship and advocacy for endangered adults in Marion County. "They've not sought any input from any stakeholders." Adult Protective Services fields 20,000 calls a year A report is made to Adult Protective Services whenever an individual 18 years or older is suspected of being deprived of food and water, improperly clothed, neglected medically, exploited financially, or in other ways. In 2023, Adult Protective Services received more than 20,000 calls for service, according to the FSSA Division of Aging Adult Protective Services 2024 Annual Report. Of those, 11,653 cases resulted from the calls. Vulnerable adults can include individuals unable to care for themselves due to age, mental or developmental disabilities, incapacitating injuries, mental illness, or those suffering from isolation or neglect. The program, which resides in FSSA's Division of Aging, is funded through state appropriations. Indiana operates Adult Protective Services within the county-based criminal justice system and contracts with 17 prosecutors to administer it through a hub model. Most hubs service multiple counties. Prosecutors say the program repeatedly had funding issues. "For multiple budget cycles, the State and the Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA) declined to provide sufficient financial resources to the Adult Protective Services (APS) program, leaving prosecutors concerned that the standard of care to Indiana's increasing elder population and vulnerable adults could not be maintained," Whitney Riggs, spokeswoman for the Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys Council, said via email. A 2016 IndyStar investigation revealed that Indiana Adult Protective Services was too understaffed, underfunded and ill-equipped to handle the deluge of calls requesting assistance for at-risk adults. At the time, Indiana had budgeted roughly $3.5 million for the program — significantly less than other states. The lack of support left adults who could not protect themselves exposed to abuse and neglect, and well-intentioned investigators overwhelmed by caseloads. Shortly after the investigation was published, Indiana lawmakers pledged an additional $1.1 million to hire more full-time investigators for adult protective services. But, advocates say funding shortfalls did not cease. The situation is becoming more dire as the state's population ages. "The hope was that there would be an approach taken to reorganizing the APS model into a better, more efficient agency and to fund it appropriately," Bennett said. "There was some more funds dedicated following that series of articles.... but, I don't think it has been sufficient by any means." Riggs said there have been times when county governments subsidized budgetary shortfalls, leaving residents of some counties to finance services for residents of other counties. "This was unsustainable long term," she said. According to the Adult Protective Services 2024 annual report, the APS Unit Contract was $5.6 million in 2023. The majority of the funding — $4.4 million — was from a state appropriation. The remaining $1.2 million was from federal Medicaid dollars. Acting on continued funding concerns, Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys Committee notified FSSA in late 2023 that the majority of hub prosecutors did not intend to renew their contractual relationship again. FSSA, in turn, issued in September 2024 a request for proposals soliciting vendors interested in administering the program. Prosecutors bid to keep providing services Riggs said the Adult Protective Services Hub Prosecutors Committee submitted a bid for the new contract. It was "at an amount of money that nearly forty years of experience doing this work told us would be the minimal amount of state money that should be allocated for a successful program, and in the same amount previously requested," she said. For months, the council heard nothing. It's unclear how the model for Adult Protective Services could change under PCG-Indiana. Neither the state nor the company responded to IndyStar questions about the for-profit company's plans for the program or what the transition would entail. IndyStar has requested copies of the state's initial request for proposal and the responses to it. According to the award letter recommending PCG-Indiana for the contract, the Massachusetts company will subcontract with three partners. Marion Edward Associates Inc., a Boston-based staffing firm, will get 9% of the contract value. Local consulting company Briljent LLC will get approximately 12% of the contract value while Axon Advisors LLC, a market research firm also based in Indianapolis, will receive about 4%. PCG-Indiana beat out IPAC's Adult Protective Service Hub Prosecutor Committee and Community Care Hub of Indiana for the contract. The proposals were evaluated by FSSA and the Indiana Department of Administration, which oversaw the procurement process. According to the letter, the agencies were made aware of updates that were part of the state's budget process and limited the maximum amount of funding available. Respondents were invited to withdraw or revise their proposals to align with the changes and new budget cap. "Only one of the three respondents updated their technical and cost proposals to align with a reduced scope of services within the new budget maximum. This Respondent was PCG," the letter reads. Said Riggs: "Prosecutors were hopeful they could persuade the state to provide adequate resources for this important mission." 2-month transition window causes concern Prosecutors, investigators and advocates who reached out to IndyStar have expressed concern about the lack of communication regarding the procurement process from FSSA and state officials. "We're very concerned about what will happen and I know the courts are very concerned about what will happen with APS," said Bennett, who wasn't familiar with PCG Indiana or Public Consulting Group. "I'm hoping that whomever takes on the contract provides good services to be able to respond to complaints that APS might receive, but I think I may have to take a wait and see attitude on that. He said FSSA has not sought input from stakeholders. Prosecutors will focus on a smooth transition and handover of the program, Riggs said, though advocates wonder if there's enough time to transition the program. The state awarded PCG-Indiana the Adult Protective Services contract just two months before the expiration of the current contracts on June 30, leaving some investigators to wind down active cases without a resolution and advocates wondering where they should turn to report suspected cases of abuse and neglect.
Yahoo
17-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Measure updating Adult Protective Services glides through committee
Sen. Mike Crider, R-Greenfield, talks about his Family and Social Services Administration agency bill in committee on Monday, March 17, 2025. (Leslie Bonilla Muñiz/Indiana Capital Chronicle) Improvements are on the way for Indiana's Adult Protective Services — the initiative protecting abused, exploited and neglected adults — after a 12-0 committee vote Monday morning. Sen. Mike Crider, R-Greenfield, told committee members that the 'clean-up' bill removes 'antiquated' language and offers the Family and Social Services Administration more flexibility in drawing up contracts for Adult Protective Services. Senate Bill 182 would specify that the entire chunk of Indiana Code dedicated to Adult Protective Services would apply to reports of suspected abuse, neglect and exploitation that are made by phone or online. To report suspected abuse, neglect or exploitation of an endangered adult, call Indiana's toll-free hotline at 800-992-6978 or fill out an online form. It would remove 'habitual drunkenness' and 'excessive drug use' from the list of conditions that might render adults incapable of taking care of themselves or their belongings — and at risk of harm. Left in the definition of an 'endangered' adult would be dementia, intellectual disability, mental illness and other incapacities. 'It's not something that requires an investigation of law enforcement as far as, are they being exploited financially or being harmed in some way by another individual? It's more considered self-harm,' Crider told the Capital Chronicle. He said his bill's information-sharing provisions would make sure Hoosiers with substance abuse disorders are 'appropriately referred over to the Division of Mental Health and Addiction,' instead of the Division of Aging. FSSA houses both. Others provisions would introduce a record-keeping minimum, let the Adult Protective Services unit restrict records releases 'to the extent that information … is needed to coordinate or implement services,' and require only an alleged victim's consent for release. Crider said the proposal arose from previous, successful legislation letting FSSA contract out to other entities when county prosecutors didn't want to renew their contracts. 'A few issues came up as FSSA began to try to develop the contract language,' he said. The bill removes language requiring the Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys Council to concur on standards of practice and exceptions that currently allow for an Adult Protective Services unit or staffer to be appointed as the representative or guardian for an endangered adult. It also tweaks how cases are reported to law enforcement and others. Crider said less than 2% of cases are referred for prosecution, and even fewer are prosecuted. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Fox News
11-03-2025
- Fox News
Wendy Williams says she passed competency test with ‘flying colors' after being rushed to hospital
Wendy Williams says she passed her competency tests with "flying colors." One day after being rushed to a New York hospital, the former daytime television host made an appearance on "The Breakfast Club" to explain why she pleaded to go to a medical facility and get evaluated by an independent doctor. "The police showed up. I'm exhausted. I wanted to go to the hospital to talk to the doctor," Williams, who has been under a court-appointed guardianship since May 2022, told the hosts during Tuesday's episode. Williams' caretaker, Ginalisa Monterroso, said that they have been laser-focused on trying to get "some kind of motion" into the TV personality's guardianship case. "We were pretty stuck at one point waiting for the lawyers to break through and get some type of trial," Monterroso said while on "The Breakfast Club." "I did two things. I wrote a letter to the Adult Protective Services and explained to them Wendy's situation. She was isolated and needed an investigation." "Yesterday morning, during our morning calls, I told Wendy, 'We will be calling the police and telling them that you're isolated.' I pleaded with the police as if Wendy was my child. 'Please you need to get her off this floor. She is confined.'" Williams said during her chat with law enforcement, she told them "I am not incapacitated as I've been accused [of]." "This floor that I live on is the memory unit," Williams explained. "The people who live there don't remember anything, unlike me. Why am I here? What is going on? It's a cry for help." When officers visited Williams at the current facility she is residing in, Monterrosa said the TV host began to feel "a little bit of anxiety." Monterrosa explained that she advised Williams to ask police officers to take her to a hospital and ask for an independent doctor to conduct a medical evaluation. Monterrosa said the facility was giving them a "hard time," but they were eventually able to get Williams to a local hospital. "When I got to the hospital, I got checked in," Williams said. "They checked me for the heart palpitations, they did all kinds of scans." Moterrosa explained that both Williams' guardian and attorney were both present at the hospital, but shared a "difference in opinion" about how to proceed with the evaluations. After the doctor cleared her evaluations through the hospital's legal department, Williams took two competency evaluations, said Monterrosa. "She passed both tests," she said. Speaking with Rosanna Scotto on a live segment of "Good Day New York" on Tuesday, Williams said she is currently in the hospital and passed her tests with "flying colors." "Everybody knows factually that Wendy is not incapacitated," Monterrosa told Scotto. "On Monday, the NYPD responded to a welfare check at 505 West 35 Street," the New York Police Department said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital. "EMS responded and transported a 60-year-old female to an area hospital for evaluation." According to the New York Post, Williams had thrown a handwritten note that read "Help! Wendy!!" out the window. Fox News Digital has reached out to Williams and Monterrosa for further comment. Earlier this year, Williams denied she was cognitively impaired and admitted during an interview with "The Breakfast Club" that her guardianship felt like a "prison." "I am not cognitively impaired but I feel like I am in prison," Williams said in January. "I'm in this place with people who are in their 90s and their 80s and their 70s. .... These people, there's something wrong with these people here on this floor. I am clearly not." "Where I am… you have to get keys to unlock the door to press the elevator to go downstairs, first of all. Second of all, these people here, everybody here is like nursemaids, so to speak," she said. Williams admitted she isn't privy to what medication she's given. "Excuse me, doctor, can you tell me what this pill is for?" In February 2024, Williams' team announced she had been diagnosed with both progressive aphasia and frontotemporal dementia.
Yahoo
10-03-2025
- Yahoo
Wendy Williams In the Hospital Amid Battle Over Guardianship, But It's Not What You Think
Just when Wendy Williams was supposed to be getting ready for her return to daytime television later this week (more on that later), she's instead having to deal with a trip to the hospital. But not to be alarmed, it's not for the reason you might think. As we previously told you, thanks to her persistent outcries and subsequent action by her court-appointed guardian Sabrina Morrissey, Williams was set to undergo another medical evaluation to determine whether or not she she has frontotemporal dementia. That diagnosis is the one the very things that caused her to be remanded to an assisted living facility in New York City for the last three years that she previously described as a 'prison.' Now, on Monday, it appears as if she's finally had her tests as police were spotted outside of her facility were seen escorting her from her facility to Lenox Hill Hospital for the evaluations. In videos captured by TMZ, Williams was mostly quiet as she dodged questions about how she was feeling and her upcoming interview on 'The View' on Friday. ABC announced the news that she'd be coming onto the show as a guest via telephone over the weekend. This sighting also comes just after two local agencies were reported to be looking into Williams' guardianship. The first agency was Adult Protective Services who reportedly had an interview with the eponymous daytime talk show host host and her niece Alex Finnie, according to TMZ. The New York Police Department also pulled up on Williams prior to them escorting her to her appointment to do a welfare check on her and her condition. Per ABC News, two officers and a sergeant showed up to the facility in response to a 911 call of a woman in distress. However, when they arrived, Williams was reportedly calm and was able to walk with the officers and out of the building. If the results of Williams' second evaluation prove that she isn't suffering from dementia—this could call the legal validity of the guardianship into question as Morrissey was only taking over things due to Williams' alleged failing mental state. Moreover, if those results are brought in front of the judge and the guardianship is finally called off, this could be the start of a long-awaited comeback for Williams. For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
