The Senate plenum approved a legislative project to bolster care and protection for older adults amid rising indigence and assaults on this demographic. Promoted by Senator Karina Espinosa, the initiative reforms state fund management and toughens penalties for neglect. It aims to optimize resources such as the elderly welfare stamp.
Senator Karina Espinosa championed the bill, stating: "It pains us to see the situation of the elderly population, the abandonment they often face and the indifference they have endured for years. Our older adults deserve more care, more dignity and real answers. This law is for them, so that resources reach where they are truly needed and they feel more protected and better served".
The proposal refines the collection and spending of the "estampilla para el bienestar del adulto mayor", managed by local governments under stricter guidelines. Funds will support elderly farms in rural and semi-urban areas, providing housing, nutrition, productive activities and recreation.
Penally, it stiffens consequences for neglect, abuse and negligence. Abandonment of older adults will carry prison terms of four to eight years, plus fines, with harsher measures for intrafamily violence cases.
Administratively, governors and mayors gain heightened responsibility for budget execution and must account for funded programs. Coverage expands to those in absolute poverty, neglect, natural disasters or public health crises.
