MAINE, USA — WalletHub, a personal finance website, released its 2019 rankings for categories such as safest cities in the U.S. and most charitable states in the U.S. This its 2019 list of "States with the Best Elder-Abuse Protections" and Maine was ranked 26th.
According to one estimate WalletHub noted in its findings, elder abuse affects as much as ten percent of the country's population older than 60. Older Americans are more vulnerable because they often rely on others for care and assistance, thus making them more susceptible to abuse. By WalletHub's definition, abuse can come in forms such as financial abuse, neglect, and exploitation.
These findings are not insignificant since, as recently as 2017, the United States Census Bureau found Maine had the highest median age in the nation.
While Maine has an overall ranking of 26th, the state was also ranked 36th in prevalence, 13th in resources, and 28th in protection.
As far as other New England states go, Massachusetts was ranked 1st and Rhode Island was also ranked in the top 10. New Hampshire was ranked 23rd.
The entire rankings can be found here.
