Washington, D.C.—U.S. Senator Susan Collins, the Chairman of the Senate Special Committee on Aging, is warning of a new variation of the pernicious IRS impersonation scam.  According to the U.S. Treasury Inspection General for Tax Administration, iTunes and other gift cards are now the primary form of payment demanded by con artists pretending to be IRS agents. 

One week ago, J. Bryon Martin, a 77-year-old former pastor from Dresden, Maine, was serving the first year of a six-year sentence in a Spanish prison.  With failing health, Mr. Martin faced the prospect of spending the rest of his life incarcerated, thousands of miles from his home and loved ones.  His crime?  Mr. Martin was the victim of a scam that tricked him into unknowingly transporting illegal drugs across an international border.

Washington, D.C. – The U.S. Senate unanimously approved a bipartisan resolution introduced by U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-ME), the Chairman of the Senate Special Committee on Aging, and Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), a Member of the Committee, declaring June 15, 2016, as World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. The resolution calls attention to the problem of elder abuse around the nation, and honors all those that fight for justice for victims. U.S.

Washington, D.C.—U.S. Senator Susan Collins, the Chairman of the Senate Special Committee on Aging, announced today that as a result of a lead reported to the Committee’s Fraud Hotline, the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) has arrested five individuals connected with the IRS impersonation scam. Two individuals were identified as a direct result of the crucial information provided by a fraud investigator with the Aging Committee’s Hotline.  

When I was back home in Maine recently, I saw an 88-year-old woman taking care of her 90-year-old husband with Alzheimer’s.  I also spoke with a woman in her 50s who, with her sisters, is juggling their busy work schedules with the care of their mother who has Alzheimer’s.  And I talked to a man trying to cope with his wife’s dementia as well as his own health problems.

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Senate Aging Committee Chairman Susan Collins and Ranking Member Claire McCaskill will hold the third hearing in a series the Committee is conducting to investigate the sudden, aggressive price spikes of decades-old Rx drugs on 

Bipartisan legislation stems from ongoing Aging Committee investigation into the causes, impacts, and potential solutions to these egregious price spikes

Washington, D.C.—U.S. Senator Susan Collins, the Chairman of the Senate Special Committee on Aging, led a hearing today titled, “Opioid Use Among Seniors—Issues and Emerging Trends,” to examine a facet of one of the foremost public health challenges facing our nation: opioid addiction.  The Aging Committee’s hearing explored the medical use of opioids for pain relief and the challenges health care providers face in treating pain in an environment where the diversion of prescription painkillers is contributing to the ongoing opioid epidemic.  At the invitation of Senator Collins, MaineGeneral’s Senior VP and Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Steve Diaz, testified at today’s hearing.

Hearing Scheduled for Wednesday, February 24, 2:30 PM, Dirksen Room 562

Washington, D.C.— The Senate Special Committee on Aging will hold a hearing titled, “Opioid Use Among Seniors—Issues and Emerging Trends,” to examine a facet of one of the foremost public health challenges facing our nation: opioid addiction.  The hearing will be led by Chairman Susan Collins and by Senator Joe Donnelly, who will serve as the Ranking Member.  

U.S. Senator Susan Collins participated in a forum regarding small businesses, aging, and retirement security, among other topics at Husson University.  The forum, part of the popular series, “A Conversation at the Dyke Center,” was hosted by the Richard E. Dyke Center for Family Business.  Senator Collins was the founding executive director of the Center.  Dr. Nancy Forster-Holt, the current Director, was Senator Collins’ conversation partner.

Click

In what law enforcement officials describe as a new front in international smuggling, global traffickers and cartels are increasingly turning to a new source for couriers to smuggle drugs across international borders: vulnerable American older adults.

The traffickers deceive seniors with promises of prizes or relationships, setting them up to unknowingly try to carry luggage filled with cocaine or other items through customs, hoping they will not arouse suspicions. Such cases have been seen in nearly a dozen foreign countries, officials say. Details of the smuggling and a counteroperation that officials called Operation Cocoon were disclosed by the Department of Homeland Security during a hearing on Wednesday before the Senate Special Committee on Aging.

To view a signed PDF of the letter, click

This week, Senator Collins sat down with the Bangor Daily News' Meg Haskell to discuss the challenges facing aging Americans, and her plans as Chairman of the Senate Aging Committee.