ENROLLED HOUSE
BILL NO. 3317 By: Bashore, Cantrell, Hill, and May of the House
and
Green
and Stephens of the Senate
An Act relating to Alzheimer's disease; amending Section 2,
Chapter 123, O.S.L. 2022 (43A O.S. Supp. 2023, Section 10-115), which relates
to multidisciplinary team for investigation and prosecution of elder or
vulnerable adult abuse; adding a requirement for the multidisciplinary team;
and providing an effective date.
SUBJECT: Alzheimer's disease
BE IT
ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF
SECTION 1.
AMENDATORY Section 2, Chapter
123, O.S.L. 2022 (43A O.S. Supp. 2023, Section 10-115), is amended to read as
follows:
Section 10-115. A. In coordination with the District Attorneys
Council, each district attorney may develop a multidisciplinary team for the
investigation and prosecution of crimes committed against the elderly or
vulnerable adults in each county of the district attorney or in a contiguous
group of counties. The lead agency for
the team shall be chosen by the members of the team. The team shall intervene in reports involving
sexual abuse, abuse, neglect, or exploitation of an elderly person or
vulnerable adult as defined in Section 10-103 of Title 43A of the Oklahoma
Statutes this title.
B.
The multidisciplinary elderly and vulnerable adult abuse team members
shall include, but not be limited to:
1.
Mental health professionals licensed pursuant to the laws of this state
or licensed professional counselors;
2.
Police officers or other law enforcement agents whose duties include, or
who have experience or training in, elder and vulnerable adult abuse and
neglect investigation;
3.
Medical personnel with experience in elder and vulnerable adult abuse
and neglect identification;
4.
Adult Protective Services, Office of Client Advocacy, and long-term care
workers within the Department of Human Services;
5.
Multidisciplinary elder and vulnerable adult abuse team coordinators;
and
6.
The district attorney or assistant district attorney.
C.
1. Subject to the availability of
funds and resources, the functions of the team shall include, but not be
limited to:
a. whenever
feasible, joint investigations by law enforcement and Adult Protective
Services, Office of Client Advocacy, or long-term care staff to effectively
respond to reports of abuse against elderly or vulnerable adult victims,
b. the
development of a written protocol for investigation of sexual abuse, abuse,
neglect, or exploitation cases of elderly or vulnerable adults and for the
interview of victims to ensure coordination and cooperation between all
agencies involved. Such protocol shall
include confidentiality statements and interagency agreements signed by member
agencies that specify the cooperative effort of the member agencies to the team,
c. communication
and collaboration among the professionals responsible for the reporting,
investigation, prosecution, and treatment of elderly and vulnerable adult abuse
and neglect cases,
d. elimination
of duplicative efforts in the investigation and the prosecution of abuse and
neglect cases committed against elderly or vulnerable adult victims,
e. identification
of gaps in service or untapped resources within the community to improve the
delivery of services to the victim and family,
f. development
of expertise through training. Each team
member and those conducting investigations and interviews of elder or
vulnerable adult abuse victims shall be trained in the multidisciplinary team
approach, conduction of legally sound developmentally and age-appropriate
interviews, effective investigation techniques and joint investigations as
provided through the State Department of Health, the District Attorneys
Council, the Department of Human Services, or other resources. At least one team member or those conducting
investigations and interviews of elder or vulnerable adult abuse victims shall
complete dementia-specific training on Alzheimer's disease and related dementia
that includes one or more of the following:
(1) communication
skills,
(2) problem-solving
with challenging behaviors, or
(3) explanation
of Alzheimer's disease and other dementia,
g. formalization
of a case review process and provision of data as requested, and
h. standardization
of investigative procedures for the handling of elderly and vulnerable adult
abuse and neglect cases.
2.
Any investigation or interview related to sexual abuse, abuse, or
neglect of elderly or vulnerable adults shall be conducted by appropriate
personnel using the protocols and procedures specified in this section.
3.
If trained personnel are not available in a timely manner and if a law
enforcement officer or the Department of Human Services determines that there
is reasonable cause to believe a delay in investigation or interview of a
victim could place the victim's health or welfare in danger of harm or
threatened harm, the investigation may proceed without full participation of
all personnel, but only for as long as the danger to the victim exists. The Department of Human Services shall
make a reasonable effort to find and provide a trained investigator or
interviewer.
D.
A multidisciplinary elder or vulnerable adult abuse team shall have full
access to any service or treatment plan and any personal data known to the
Department of Human Services that is directly related to the implementation of
the requirements of this section.
E.
Each member of the team shall protect the confidentiality of the elderly
or vulnerable adult and any information made available to the team member. The multidisciplinary team and any information
received by the team shall be exempt from the Oklahoma Open Meeting Act and the
Oklahoma Open Records Act.
SECTION 2.
This act shall become effective November 1, 2024.
Passed the House of
Representatives the 7th day of March, 2024.
Presiding
Officer of the House
of
Representatives
Passed the Senate the 17th day of
April, 2024.
Presiding
Officer of the Senate
OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
Received by the Office
of the Governor this ____________________ day of ___________________,
20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
By:
_________________________________
Approved by the
Governor of the State of Oklahoma this _________ day of ___________________,
20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
_________________________________
Governor of
the State of Oklahoma
OFFICE
OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE
Received by the Office
of the Secretary of State this __________ day of ___________________,
20_______, at _______ o'clock _______ M.
By:
_________________________________