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The Texas Silver Alert

SOURCE: National Association of State Units on Aging (NASUA)
 

The Amber Alert system has been used nationwide to help locate missing kids. Now some are proposing an alert that would help find senior citizens. It's called the Silver Alert. The emergency system would especially help with seniors suffering from mental impairments like Alzheimer's. It's estimated some 900 senior citizens are reported missing in Texas every year.

The Texas Silver Alert is integrated with the Texas AMBER Alert system to make up the Texas AMBER/Silver Alert Network. The program is administered through the Texas Department of Public safety, and is funded through the Office of the Governor, Criminal Justice Division. The Silver Alert system implemented September 1, 2007 is the result of state legislation that Governor Perry signed on May 14, 2007.

The Texas system requires the following:

1. The person must be a senior age 65 or older,

2. The person must have Texas as their primary residence,

3. The person must have a written diagnosis from a medical or mental health professional stating the senior has an impaired mental condition. The disappearance must pose a credible threat to the senior's health and safety,

4. The report must be filed within 72 hours of the disappearance, and

5. There must be sufficient information to disseminate to the public that could assist in locating the missing senior.

Since inception of the Program on September 1, 2007, there have been 31 activations of the Texas Silver Alert Network.