Proposed bill aims to better serve Georgia’s growing aging population during police calls

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As Georgia's population of seniors grows faster than other groups, some advocates are hoping for focused attempts at keeping older people at risk of cognitive decline safe.

The number of people over 65 years old in Georgia is growing faster than most other groups.  

Georgia gained an additional 60,000 seniors from 2022 to 2023, according the latest data available from the U.S. Census Bureau's population estimates by state.  

Comparatively in the same time frame, the number of adults between 24 and 44 years old grew by only half that, and there was a decline in the number of minors, those under 18 years old. 

Nancy Petra with the Alzheimer’s Association of Georgia said it’s time for state lawmakers and agencies to really consider what’s best for its aging population.  

“These are going to be the majority of people that are retiring in our North Georgia mountains and in our coastal areas and who are going to make up those communities,” Petra said.  

As those communities grow, it’s expected that so will the number of people with cognitive decline.  

“We wanted the legislation to codify that Georgia is making this a priority,” Petra said.  

The Alzheimer’s Association along with the Georgia Council on Aging have advocated for House Bill 238, which would expand training for officers on identifying and responding to situations to aid someone with Alzheimer's, the most common form of dementia, or other degenerative diseases.  

The bill passed the state House by the Crossover Day deadline last Thursday.  

Petra said there are hundreds of families that can relate to watching a loved one be diagnosed with a degenerative disease. But early signs of memory loss are not always easy to spot — until maybe one day, when a loved one goes to run an errand.  

“She gets in the car, and she goes to the Walmart where she always goes,” Petra said. 

Except this time, that loved one forgets why they’re there, and gets confused, or frightened. 

“And maybe if people are approaching her, she's getting agitated,” she said. “And so someone calls the police.” 

People with conditions that cause cognitive decline are also prone to wandering — one estimate from the Alzheimer’s Association suggests 6 in 10 people diagnosed with dementia will wander at least once.  

As currently written, HB 238 would establish a mandate for the Georgia Public Safety Training Center (GPSTC) to “create and maintain” a training course on at-risk adults with a focus on training for response to people with Alzheimer’s and/or dementia.  

The training center in Forsyth is where cadets from around the state attend various programs they are required by law to complete before becoming officers.  

That includes Crisis Intervention Training, or CIT. Kevin Angell, public information officer for GPSTC, said that 40-hour training includes scenario-based practice that prepares officers to respond to calls where people may be “emotionally disturbed” and need to be “de-escalated.”  

Any new training approved by the state legislature would offer a more focused approach on older adults in cognitive decline, and add on to training they already offer for At-Risk adults, Angell said.  

“We try to be ahead of things like that,” Angell said.  

The existing course is 3 hours long and taken online. Angell said just over 2,500 officers took part in it over the course of last year.  

There wasn't much legislation introduced this session centered around aging people. One bill proposed creating a Georgia Adult and Aging Services Board, a group of appointed older adults who would advise on the coordination and availability of aging services. It failed to pass through its origin chamber.  

Another, a resolution that failed to make it to a vote, suggested adding caregiving to the list of eligible qualifying activities under Georgia Pathways, the Medicaid program for people who make up to 100% of the Federal Poverty Level and can complete 80 hours of work, education or other activities per month.