I am writing as Chairman of the Fairfax County Advisory Social Services Board to express concerns in regard to the proposed revisions to the Adult Protective Services Regulation, 22VAC40-740, now posted in the Virginia Regulatory Town Hall for public comment.

The history and mission of Adult Protective Services (APS) applies social work casework practices to situations involving vulnerable adults who are at risk of harm and who need services to prevent or remove the risk. APS social workers assess the needs of adults and help to determine services (arranging for home based care, transportation, home delivered meals, and other community and social supports).  

We have concerns related to the sections pertaining to notifications to alleged “perpetrators” and the right of “perpetrators” to request a review of the local agency’s investigative findings. The proposed regulation mistakenly implies that the APS assessment is a criminal or punitive process.  A summary about APS and concerns about the proposed regulation is below:

• Over the years, criminal legal terms, such as investigation, preponderance of evidence, and perpetrator have been injected into guidance policy and regulation. The new regulation introduces “perpetrator” into regulation for the first time and then establishes the right to review. The casework mission of APS is being confused and jeopardized by this change.

• The new regulation does not recognize that APS cases of self-neglect, in which the “victim” is also the “perpetrator”, comprise more than 50% of APS situations.

• The new regulation will result in unintended consequences with “perpetrators” having access to presently confidential information. There may be an increase in risk for vulnerable adults, especially those adults who live with and/or are dependent upon the “perpetrators”.

• Current policy already allows for written statements from anyone to be included in the APS record. Anyone can currently read information about himself in a record.

• A fiscal impact analysis conducted by the League of Social Services Executives in 2011 indicates a greater impact than the $121,597 estimated by the Virginia Department of Social Services. The League conducted a survey of local agencies and determined a state wide annual cost of $318,214.  This represents an unfunded mandate on localities.   

The new APS regulation changes the mission of APS from a casework focus of helping vulnerable adults to a focus upon “perpetrators”. Instead of going in a direction of further “criminalizing” Adult Protective Services, it is recommended that “perpetrators” and other like terms be removed from policy guidance and regulation.  If the right to review language is not removed:

• Apply it to situations only involving “perpetrators” who have caused abuse, neglect, or exploitation for a vulnerable adult.

• Differentiate situations where an adult is at risk and the services are not as a result of a “perpetrator”.

• Allow for exceptions to right to review when the social worker determines there is possibility of harm to the adult as a result or if identifying the “perpetrator” would interfere with any other pending investigation.

The function of Adult Protective Services can be maintained through policy and regulation emphasis upon the APS worker’s role of assessment of the need for services for vulnerable adults and the requirement for referral to licensing, regulatory and legal authorities. Vulnerable adults can live safely in their homes and in facilities with the partnership functions of APS workers and those with legal, regulatory, and personnel authority.