Wyoming Is One of the Best States in the Nation for Protecting Elders

Elder abuse is a growing concern throughout the country. It costs Americans billions of dollars and unfortunately encompasses a wide range of abuses, including physical, psychological and/or sexual harm, in addition to other concerns like neglect and taking advantage of seniors financially.

A new study conducted by personal finance website, WalletHub, recently listed the “States with the Best Elder-Abuse Protections”, and the Cowboy State was ranked in the top 15.

Wyoming was ranked 11th overall on the study.

WalletHub broke down the methodology for the study stating:

To identify where elderly Americans are best protected, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia based on 16 key indicators of elder abuse protection in 3 overall categories. Our data set ranges from each state’s share of all elder abuse complaints to their laws concerning financial elder abuse.

A few of the key metrics illustrate why Wyoming scored so high (including the one that kept us from scoring even higher):

• Prevalence Rank – 19th
• Resources Rank – 5th
• Protection Rank –  47th

While overall Wyoming is doing considerably better than 80% of the country, there is definitely room for improvement. Considering some of the elderly horror stories that have made it to different news outlets around the state over the last couple of years, it’s nice to see us rising on this list.