Living the Life of Another: The Need for Public Guardians of Last Resort

Abstract

Self-report surveys were sent to preidentified representatives of Adult Protective Services, sheriff's offices, community services boards, state training centers, and state hospitals to assess the need for public guardianship. The agencies estimated the need for a total of 2,881 surrogate decision makers (including powers of attorney and payees) and, in particular, 1,425 guardianships. Events most likely to precipitate guardianship included third-party behavior, mental illness or personal behavior, and cognitive impairments or limitations. Virginia's trajectory of the establishment of explicit public guardianship is highly instructive for states and localities seeking to establish or refine public guardianship statutes. As a result of information obtained from the needs assessment and a companion evaluation of two demonstration projects, the Virginia Public Guardian and Conservator Program became law in 1998.