State Representative Mike Dovilla (R-Berea) today announced that the Ohio Senate voted to pass House Bill 215, which would designate June 15th of each year as “Elder Abuse Awareness Day.”

House Bill 215 specifies that this annual designation be made to increase public awareness of the innocent victims of elder abuse. The bill, which the House passed in June by a vote of 93-4, passed the Senate unanimously.

“I am gratified by the Ohio Senate’s passage of House Bill 215. The goal of this legislation is to shine a spotlight on the often unrecognized issue of elder abuse,” said Dovilla. “Since the introduction of our bill last spring, I have been working with Attorney General DeWine to reform the way Ohio handles cases of elder abuse. Soon, we will introduce additional legislation which will propose meaningful and life-saving changes to the manner in which Ohio’s adult protective services agencies care for our senior citizens.”

The need for this legislation was brought to Representative Dovilla’s attention by Kathi Lowery, Senior Director for the City of Olmsted Falls, in a fine example of a constituent illuminating an issue on which she and others sought action from their state government.

House Bill 215 will now move to the governor for enactment into law.