RCW 74.34.063: Response to reports—Timing—Reports to law enforcement agencies—Notification to licensing authority.

(1) The department shall initiate a response to a report, no later than twenty-four hours after knowledge of the report, of suspected abandonment, abuse, financial exploitation, neglect, or self-neglect of a vulnerable adult. (2) When the initial report or investigation by the department indicates that the alleged abandonment, abuse, financial exploitation, or neglect may be criminal, the department shall make an immediate report to the appropriate law enforcement agency. The department and law enforcement will coordinate in investigating reports made under this chapter. The department may provide protective services and other remedies as specified in this chapter. (3) The law enforcement agency or the department shall report the incident in writing to the proper county prosecutor or city attorney for appropriate action whenever the investigation reveals that a crime may have been committed. (4) Upon request, the department and law enforcement shall share information contained in reports and findings of abandonment, abuse, financial exploitation, and neglect of vulnerable adults with each other, consistent with RCW 74.04.060 , chapter 42.56 RCW, and other applicable confidentiality laws. (5) Unless prohibited by federal law, the department of social and health services may share with the department of children, youth, and families information contained in reports and findings of abandonment, abuse, financial exploitation, and neglect of vulnerable adults. (6) The department shall notify the proper licensing authority concerning any report received under this chapter that alleges that a person who is professionally licensed, certified, or registered under Title 18 RCW has abandoned, abused, financially exploited, or neglected a vulnerable adult.