Rapid City, SD – A new study places South Dakota at the bottom of the list for elder abuse protections in the United States, raising concerns for families and caregivers across the state.
The personal finance website WalletHub released its 2025 report on “States with the Best Elder-Abuse Protections,” ranking South Dakota 51st out of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. The study compared jurisdictions across three key dimensions: prevalence of abuse, resources for prevention and legal protection.
This ranking comes despite the state performing well in funding metrics. Data shows South Dakota tied for first place in the nation for total long-term care ombudsman program funding per resident aged 65 and older. Additionally, the state ranked fourth in the nation for nursing home quality.
The report highlights a disparity between the quality of facilities and the volume of reported issues. South Dakota ranked eighth for available resources and 24th for legal protections, but these positive indicators were not enough to offset the low score in the prevalence of abuse complaints and lack of advocates.
South Dakota ranked 47th in Certified Volunteer Ombudsmen, which are trained long term care advocates but 4th for Total Long-Term Care Ombudsman-Program Funding.
According to Wallet Hub, the study utilized data from various federal and non-profit sources, including the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Center on Elder Abuse. The analysis weighed 16 metrics, ranging from the number of elder care organizations to laws regarding financial exploitation.
