Jennifer Coldren of Rome, N.Y., summoned her courage and traveled to the nation's capital in July to tell Congress about the rape of her now 91-year-old grandmother in a nursing home a year ago.

Coldren had a reason: She thought the story would help press Congress to pass legislation designed to protect elderly people from such abuse. "It was the most horrible thing in the world. A nightmare," she said.

But Coldren would go away feeling somewhat disappointed. She found Congress obsessed with Iraq. Her testimony before the Senate Special Committee on Aging did not receive wide media coverage. Despite her efforts, the Elder Justice Act, designed to combat abuse, neglect and exploitation of older Americans, still gathers dust in Congress. It has been doing that for five years, odd for a bill with few visible opponents.

Coldren said her grandmother became depressed and had a stroke after the rape in May 2006. She decided to care for her at home, no longer trusting the nursing home. A nursing home aide, who had been hired before a background check was completed, was convicted of the crime in March. It turned out he had a criminal record and would not have been hired if the nursing home had waited for the background check.

"Every time I pick up the paper, it seems you hear more and more of [abuse] going on," Coldren said. "I had never really noticed it before this happened."

Paul Greenwood, head of the elder abuse prosecution unit in San Diego, prosecutes about 200 cases of elderly abuse a year.

"It's an absolute disgrace," he said. "If this bill doesn't get passed this year, I think the elders of our country need to start getting a little more vocal and telling legislators what they think of them."

But passage this year is a long shot. The bill appears to be a victim of Congress' partisan divisions, competing priorities, the draining nature of the Iraq war, constant fights over money, the difficulty of passing a stand-alone bill and too little time. 

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"It is not a glamorous issue," said Sen. Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.), the chief Senate sponsor. "It's kind of inexcusable."

In the House, Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.), the main sponsor, said everyone seems to be for the bill and he hoped to get pieces of it included in other legislation.

The lack of success is something of a mystery. The elderly -- defined in the bill as those 60 or older -- are one of the nation's most powerful voting blocs. Abuse, neglect and exploitation of older people are on the rise and by some estimates could affect 5 million people, though no one has a precise number. The Baby Boom generation is gaining senior status and already has demonstrated its political prowess.

And there is more interest academically in protecting vulnerable seniors. Dr. Robert Butler, head of the International Longevity Center-USA, a research group in New York, said a move is afoot to try to make the elderly a "protected class" under U.S. and international law, because the aging population is a worldwide phenomenon. Advocates for the elderly point out that children and battered women receive such favored treatment.

But a dirty little secret, and perhaps one reason the legislation is not moving faster, is that many seniors are abused at home by family members.

"I think because of that, perhaps, there is not as much stir up here to do something," Lincoln said.

Kathleen Quinn, executive director of the National Adult Protective Services Association, said funding for protective services for seniors is insufficient and uneven across the country.

"It's an invisible population with an invisible social service system," she said. "One of the things the bill will do is raise the awareness of elder abuse."

The Elder Justice Act would set up separate elderly justice offices in the U.S. Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services, pump $400 billion into state adult protective services over four years and create a federal coordinating committee among agencies to monitor and direct the government's efforts.

The bill would establish forensic centers around the country to probe elderly abuse cases and give local prosecutors more support in bringing cases. And it would penalize nursing homes if they did not report crimes swiftly.

Emanuel's bill also would require the attorney general to develop a plan for prosecuting elder abuse cases and provide grants to assist state and local prosecutors.

Sen. Herb Kohl (D-Wis.), head of the Senate Special Committee on Aging, backs a separate measure requiring criminal background checks for newly hired nursing home workers, a provision Coldren said might have prevented the rape of her grandmother. But nursing homes have made it clear they don't want to incur the extra cost of those background checks, so the federal government would have to bear the burden.

Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa), a supporter of the legislation, succeeded in getting the elder justice bill through the Senate Finance Committee when he was chairman a year ago, but the measure never came to a floor vote. Now he indicated the measure would have to go through several committees before reaching the floor, adding more obstacles.

"It's typical for a wide-ranging bill that spans multiple committee jurisdictions and has a significant cost estimate to take time to advance through Congress," he said. "Various committee leaders have had to vet the bill to be sure it will work as intended."

As Congress works away on the bill, Coldren said she is doing "an excellent job" as a caretaker. While her grandmother has not completely recovered, Coldren said, "she is smiling again."