Silver Alert Bill to Help Find Lost Dementia Victims Reintroduced in U.S. Senate

Silver Alert Bill to Help Find Lost Dementia Victims Reintroduced in U.S. Senate

House passed Silver Alert last month, many state and local governments setting up programs

March 17, 2009 – Legislation was reintroduced in the U.S. Senate last week to create a nationwide network for locating missing senior citizens and other adults. The Silver Alert Act, first introduced last Congress, would create a program modeled after the Amber Alert and provide federal coordination and assistance to local and state law enforcement agencies.


Last month, the U.S. House of Representatives unanimously passed the National Silver Alert Act (H.R. 632), a version of the bill sponsored by Congressman Lloyd Doggett (D-TX).

U.S. Senator Herb Kohl (D-WI), Chairman of the Senate Special Committee on Aging, and U.S. Senator Mel Martinez (R-FL), Ranking Member, again joined forces to reintroduce a bill in the Senate.

“Setting up a Silver Alert system for seniors who go missing due to Alzheimer’s disease or dementia will promote the safety of our nation’s seniors, while bringing peace of mind to many concerned families,” said Senator Kohl. “With half a million new cases of Alzheimer’s every year, the need for a system of this kind will only grow.”

“With the growing number of aging Americans, especially those with dementia or Alzheimer’s disease, thousands of adults go missing every year,” said Senator Martinez, the top Republican on the Senate’s Special Committee on Aging.

“Providing families and law enforcement agencies with the combined resources they need to locate loved ones is essential. This type of proven nationwide network will assist states and territories with developing their own location system and integrate local Silver Alert plans currently in place with the national network.”

The bill encourages states to develop Silver Alert plans and provides funding to enhance and integrate Silver Alert plans that are currently in place in various states by directing the Department of Justice to establish a national communications network to assist efforts to locate missing senior citizens.

It also reauthorizes Kristen’s Act, which helps to maintain a national, interconnected resource center and clearinghouse for missing adults.

The National Association of State Units on Aging surveyed states last spring to determine actions being taken in the states to establish Sliver Alert programs, which are primarily aimed at protecting adults with cognitive impairment.

“Silver Alert programs are modeled after the Amber Alert programs now present in all 50 states according to the report by NASUA.

“The Amber Alert programs can quickly distribute information about missing persons to law enforcement, radio, and television stations. It is designed to alert the public and law enforcement agencies so that citizens can be on the look out for missing adults.

“While the Amber Alert programs are targeted at getting information quickly disseminated about children, Silver Alert programs are targeted for adults with Alzheimer’s disease or other forms of dementia.

Of the states that responded to the NASUA survey, seven states had Silver Alert Programs and at least two states reported that they had legislation pending.

Colorado, Georgia, Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Texas, and Virginia have Silver Alert Programs in place, the survey found. Ohio had legislation that had been signed by the governor but was not yet effective.