State joins effort to reduce elder fraud

The state is joining a nationwide program that enlists doctors to protect seniors from investment fraud and other financial scams, the Minnesota Department of Commerce announced this week. The program, created by the Baylor College of Medicine and fashioned after a successful effort in Texas, educates medical professionals on how to identify seniors who may be vulnerable to financial exploitation and then refer those seniors to adult protective services. A 2010 survey conducted by Infogroup/ORC, a research company, found that one in five adults over the age of 65 have been swindled. Another group estimates that seniors are scammed out of $2.5 billion every year. For more information go to www.startribune.com/a498.