Health Care -

Oregon

I. Civil Statute Protecting Dependent Adults or Elders from Neglect or Abuse: Oregon Revised Statutes Chapter 124

A. Conduct

(1) Neglect: Failure to provide the care, supervision or services necessary to maintain the physical and mental health of an elderly person that may result in physical harm or significant emotional harm to the elderly person; or the failure of a caregiver to make a reasonable effort to protect an elderly person from abuse.

(2) Abuse:

(a) Definition:

(i) Any physical injury caused by other than accidental means, or that appears to be at variance with the explanation given of the injury;

(ii) Neglect that leads to physical harm through withholding of services necessary to maintain health and well-being;

(iii) Abandonment, including desertion or willful forsaking of an elderly person or a person with a disability or the withdrawal or neglect of duties and obligations owed an elderly person or a person with a disability by a caregiver or other person;

(iv) Willful infliction of physical pain or injury;

(v) Use of derogatory or inappropriate names, phrases or profanity, ridicule, harassment, coercion, threats, cursing, intimidation or inappropriate sexual comments or conduct of such a nature as to threaten significant physical or emotional harm to the elderly person or person with a disability;

(vi) Causing any sweepstakes promotion to be mailed to an elderly person or a person with a disability who had received sweepstakes promotional material in the United States mail, spent more than $500 in the preceding year on any sweepstakes promotions, or any combination of sweepstakes promotions from the same service, regardless of the identities of the originators of the sweepstakes promotion and who represented to the court that the person felt the need for the court’s assistance to prevent the person from incurring further expense;

(vii) Wrongfully taking or appropriating money or property, or knowingly subjecting an elderly person or person with a disability to alarm by conveying a threat to wrongfully take or appropriate money or property, which threat reasonably would be expected to cause the elderly person or person with a disability to believe that the threat will be carried out; or

(viii) Sexual contact with a non-consenting elderly person or person with a disability or with an elderly person or person with a disability considered incapable of consenting to a sexual act.

(b) Single Act and/or Pattern: Unknown.

(c) Legal Requirement for the act(s) or omission(s):

(i) An action may be brought under Or. Rev. Stat. 124.100 for physical abuse if the defendant engaged in conduct against a vulnerable person that would constitute any of the following:

Assault, menacing, recklessly endangering another person, criminal mistreatment, rape, sodomy, unlawful sexual penetration, sexual abuse, or strangulation.

(ii) An action may be brought for physical abuse if the defendant used any unreasonable physical constraint on the vulnerable person or subjected the vulnerable person to prolonged or continued deprivation of food or water.

(iii) An action may be brought for physical abuse if the defendant used a physical or chemical restraint, or psychotropic medication on the vulnerable person without an order from a physician licensed in the State of Oregon or under any of the following conditions:

(a) For the purpose of punishing the vulnerable person;

(b) For any purpose not consistent with the purposes authorized by a physician; or

(c) For a period significantly beyond that for which the restraint or medication was authorized by a physician.

(3) Sexual Abuse:

(a) Sexual contact with an elderly person who does not consent or is considered incapable of consenting to a sexual act;

(b) Sexual harassment, sexual exploitation or inappropriate exposure to sexually explicit material or language;

(c) Any sexual contact between an employee of a facility or paid caregiver and an elderly person served by the facility or caregiver;

(d) Any sexual contact between an elderly person and a relative of the elderly person other than a spouse; or

(e) Any sexual contact that is achieved through force, trickery, threat or coercion.

(4) Verbal Abuse: Means to threaten significant physical or emotional harm to an elderly person or a person with a disability through the use of:

(a) Derogatory or inappropriate names, insults, verbal assaults, profanity or ridicule; or

(b) Harassment, coercion, threats, intimidation, humiliation, mental cruelty or inappropriate sexual comments.

(5) Exploitation:

(a) Wrongfully taking the assets, funds or property belonging to or intended for the use of an elderly person or a person with a disability;

(b) Alarming an elderly person or a person with a disability by conveying a threat to wrongfully take or appropriate money or property of the person if the person would reasonably believe that the threat conveyed would be carried out;

(c) Misappropriating, misusing or transferring without authorization any money from any account held jointly or singly by an elderly person or a person with a disability; or

(d) Failing to use the income or assets of an elderly person or a person with a disability effectively for the support and maintenance of the person.

B. Vulnerable Adults

(1) Elderly Person: Any person 65 years of age or older.

(2) Person with a Disability: A person with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.

(3) Vulnerable person:

(a) An elderly person;

(b) A financially incapable person;

(c) An incapacitated person; or

(d) A person with a disability who is susceptible to force, threat, duress, coercion, persuasion or physical or emotional injury because of the person’s physical or mental impairment.

C. Persons/Entities Excluded From Statute

(1) An elderly person who in good faith is voluntarily under treatment solely by spiritual means through prayer in accordance with the tenets and practices of a recognized church or religious denomination by a duly accredited practitioner thereof shall, for this reason alone, not be considered subjected to abuse by reason of neglect.

(2) “Sexual abuse” does not mean consensual sexual contact between an elderly person and a paid caregiver who is the spouse of the elderly person.

(3) Except as provided by subsection (4) of this section, an action may not be brought against:

(i) Financial institutions;

(ii) A health care facility;

(iii) Any facility licensed or registered under Or. Rev. Stat. Chapter 443; or

(iv) Broker-dealers.

(4) An action may be brought against a person listed in subsection (3) of this section if:

(i) The person is convicted of a crime constituting physical abuse; or

(ii) The person engages in conduct constituting financial abuse and the person is convicted of a crime by reason of the conduct.

D. Reporting Requirement for Litigation to State

(1) A person commencing an action must serve a copy of the complaint on the Attorney General within 30 days after the action is commenced.

E. Mandatory Reporting Requirement

(1) Any public or private official having reasonable cause to believe that any person 65 years of age or older with whom the official comes in contact, while acting in an official capacity, has suffered abuse, or that any person with whom the official comes in contact while acting in an official capacity has abused a person 65 years of age or older shall report or cause a report to be made in the manner required in subsection (2). A psychiatrist or psychologist is not required to report such information communicated by a person if the communication is privileged.

(2) (i) When a report is required under subsection (1), an oral report shall be made immediately by telephone or otherwise to the local office of the Department of Human Services or to a law enforcement agency within the county.

(ii) When a report of a possible crime is received by the department under subsection (1), the department or the designee of the department shall notify the law enforcement agency having jurisdiction within the county where the report was made.

(iii) If the department or the designee of the department determines that there is reason to believe a crime has been committed, the department or the designee of the department shall immediately notify the law enforcement agency having jurisdiction within the county where the report was made.

(iv) When a report is received by a law enforcement agency, the agency shall immediately notify the law enforcement agency having jurisdiction if the receiving agency does not. The receiving agency shall also immediately notify the local office of the department in the county where the report was made.

F. Preclusion of Arbitration: Unknown.

G. Relationship to Medical Malpractice Actions: Unknown.

H. Criminal Provision

(1) The court may restrain and remedy the abusive conduct by issuing appropriate orders including but not limited to:

(a) A judgment for the remedies provided by ORS 124.100;

(b) Restraining orders, temporary injunctions or other actions as the court deems proper, including the acceptance of satisfactory performance bonds, the creation of receiverships, the appointment of qualified receivers and the enforcement of constructive trusts;

(c) Ordering any person to divest direct or indirect interest or contact with any person or enterprise; or

(d) Imposing reasonable restrictions, including permanent injunctions on the future activities or investments of any person, including prohibiting any person from engaging in the same type of endeavor or conduct to the extent permitted by the Constitution of the United States and this state.

(2) A person who violates one of the elder abuse statutes described commits a Class A violation.

I. Statute of Limitations

An action must be commenced within seven years after discovery of the conduct that gives rise to a cause of action.

J. Burden of Proof

Preponderance of the evidence.

K. Can Regulations Establish Standard of Care: Unknown.

II. DAMAGES

A. Damages Available

(1) A vulnerable person who suffers injury, damage or death by reason of physical abuse or financial abuse may bring an action against any person who has caused the physical or financial abuse or who has permitted another person to engage in physical or financial abuse. The court shall award the following to a plaintiff who prevails in an action under this section:

(a) An amount equal to three times all economic damages resulting from the physical or financial abuse, or $500, whichever amount is greater;

(b) An amount equal to three times all noneconomic damages, resulting from the physical or financial abuse;

(c) Reasonable attorney fees incurred by the plaintiff; and/or

(d) Reasonable fees for the services of a conservator or guardian ad litem incurred by reason of the litigation of a claim brought under this section.

 

B. Does Pain and Suffering of Decedent/Resident Survive Death

Yes.

C. Attorney’s Fees Available

Yes. Reasonable attorney fees incurred by the plaintiff are available.

III. LEGISLATION AFFECTING STATUTE

A. Pending: None known.

B. Anticipated: None known.

[1] Please note that authors are not licensed to practice in the State of Oregon.

[2] Or. Rev. Stat.  § 124.050(7) (2011).

[3] Or. Rev. Stat. § 124.005(1) (2011).

[4] Or. Rev. Stat. § 124.105 (2005).

[5] Or. Rev. Stat. § 124.050(11)(a) (2011).

[6] Or. Rev. Stat. § 124.050(13) (2011).

[7] Exploitation will not be addressed in this compendium – instead, only the abuse and/or neglect portions of the statutes.

[8] Or. Rev. Stat. § 124.050(4) (2011).

[9] Or. Rev. Stat. § 124.050(2) (2011).

[10] Or. Rev. Stat. § 410.040(7) (2003).

[11] Or. Rev. Stat. § 124.140 (1)(e) (1995).

[12] Or. Rev. Stat. § 124.095 (2005).

[13] Or. Rev. Stat. § 124.050(11)(b) (2011).

[14] Or. Rev. Stat. § 124.115(1) (1999).

[15] Or. Rev. Stat. § 124.115(2) (1999).

[16] Or. Rev. Stat. § 124.100(6) (2007).

[17] Or. Rev. Stat. § 124.060 (2009).

[18] Or. Rev. Stat. § 124.120 (1995).

[19] Or. Rev. Stat. § 124.990.

[20] Or. Rev. Stat. § 124.130 (1995).

[21] Or. Rev. Stat. § 124.010(2) (2007).

[22] Or. Rev. Stat. § 124.100 (2007).

[23] Or. Rev. Stat. § 30.020(2)(b) (1995).

[24] Or. Rev. Stat. § 124.100(2)(c) (2007).