essary to meet essential needs or to avoid physical or 
psychological harm. 
‘‘(2) CAREGIVER.—The term ‘caregiver’ means 
an individual who has the responsibility for the care 
of an elder, either voluntarily, by contract, by receipt 
of payment for care, or as a result of the operation 
of law, and means a family member or other indi-
vidual who provides (on behalf of such individual or 
of a public or private agency, organization, or insti-
tution) compensated or uncompensated care to an 
elder who needs supportive services in any setting. 
‘‘(3) ELDER.—The term ‘elder’ means an indi-
vidual age 60 or older. 
‘‘(4) ELDER JUSTICE.—The term ‘elder justice’ 
means— 
‘‘(A) from a societal perspective, efforts to— 
‘‘(i) prevent, detect, treat, intervene in, 
and prosecute elder abuse, neglect, and ex-
ploitation; and 
‘‘(ii) protect elders with diminished ca-
pacity while maximizing their autonomy; 
and 
‘‘(B) from an individual perspective, the 
recognition of an elder’s rights, including the 
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right to be free of abuse, neglect, and exploi-
tation. 
‘‘(5) EXPLOITATION.—The term ‘exploitation’ 
means the fraudulent or otherwise illegal, unauthor-
ized, or improper act or process of an individual, in-
cluding a caregiver or fiduciary, that uses the re-
sources of an elder for monetary or personal benefit, 
profit, or gain, or that results in depriving an elder 
of rightful access to, or use of, benefits, resources, be-
longings, or assets. 
‘‘(6) FIDUCIARY.—The term ‘fiduciary’— 
‘‘(A) means a person or entity with the 
legal responsibility— 
‘‘(i) to make decisions on behalf of and 
for the benefit of another person; and 
‘‘(ii) to act in good faith and with 
fairness; and 
‘‘(B) includes a trustee, a guardian, a con-
servator, an executor, an agent under a financial 
power of attorney or health care power of attor-
ney, or a representative payee. 
‘‘(7) GUARDIANSHIP.—The term ‘guardianship’ 
means— 
‘‘(A) the process by which a State court de-
termines that an adult individual lacks capacity 
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to make decisions about self-care and property, 
and appoints another individual or entity 
known as a guardian, as a conservator, or by a 
similar term, as a surrogate decisionmaker; 
‘‘(B) the manner in which the court-ap-
pointed surrogate decisionmaker carries out du-
ties to the individual and the court; or 
‘‘(C) the manner in which the court exer-
cises oversight of the surrogate decisionmaker. 
‘‘(8) LONG-TERM CARE.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—The term ‘long-term 
care’ means supportive and health services speci-
fied by the Secretary for individuals who need 
assistance because the individuals have a loss of 
capacity for self-care due to illness, disability, or 
vulnerability. 
‘‘(B) LOSS OF CAPACITY FOR SELF-CARE.— 
For purposes of subparagraph (A), the term ‘loss 
of capacity for self-care’ means an inability to 
engage in 1 or more activities of daily living, in-
cluding eating, dressing, bathing, and manage-
ment of one’s financial affairs. 
‘‘(9) NEGLECT.—The term ‘neglect’ means— 
‘‘(A) the failure of a caregiver or fiduciary 
to provide the goods or services that are nec-
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essary to maintain the health or safety of an 
elder; or 
‘‘(B) self-neglect. 
‘‘(10) SELF-NEGLECT.—The term ‘self-neglect’ 
means an adult’s inability, due to physical or mental 
impairment or diminished capacity, to perform essen-
tial self-care tasks including— 
‘‘(A) obtaining essential food, clothing, shel-
ter, and medical care; 
‘‘(B) obtaining goods and services necessary 
to maintain physical health, mental health, or 
general safety; or 
‘‘(C) managing one’s own financial affairs. 
‘‘SEC. 2012. GENERAL PROVISIONS. 
‘‘(a) PROTECTION OF PRIVACY.—In pursuing activi-
ties under this part, the Secretary shall ensure the protec-
tion of individual health privacy consistent with the regula-
tions promulgated under section 264(c) of the Health Insur-
ance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 and appli-
cable State and local privacy regulations. 
‘‘(b) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this part 
shall be construed to interfere with or abridge an elder’s 
right to practice his or her religion through reliance on 
prayer alone for healing when this choice— 
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‘‘(1) is contemporaneously expressed, either oral-
ly or in writing, with respect to a specific illness or 
injury which the elder has at the time of the decision 
by an elder who is competent at the time of the deci-
sion; 
‘‘(2) is previously set forth in a living will, 
health care proxy, or other advance directive docu-
ment that is validly executed and applied under State 
law; or 
‘‘(3) may be unambiguously deduced from the el-
der’s life history. 
‘‘SEC. 2013. ELDER JUSTICE COORDINATING COUNCIL. 
‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established within 
the Office of the Secretary an Elder Justice Coordinating 
Council (in this section referred to as the ‘Council’). 
‘‘(b) MEMBERSHIP.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Council shall be com-
posed of the following members: 
‘‘(A) The Secretary (or the Secretary’s des-
ignee). 
‘‘(B) The Attorney General (or the Attorney 
General’s designee). 
‘‘(C) The head of each Federal department 
or agency or other governmental entity identified 
by the Chair referred to in subsection (d) as hav-
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