State securities regulators, set to take on greater oversight responsibility for financial fraud if the Wall Street reform bill takes effect, are enlisting the help of medical doctors to catch securities fraudsters who target seniors. According to a 2009 MetLife study, financial scams cost aging Americans $2.6 billion a year.
A program begun in Texas that encourages doctors to report signs of financial exploitation among their patients to the Texas State Securities Board is expanding nationally with financial support from the Investor Protection Trust, a Washington non-profit funded by securities industry settlements, says a story in the Journal today. So far, 30 state securities regulators are participating, as well as national groups of doctors and elder-abuse investigators.