Soaked in his own urine, the West End man was left alone for 10 hours a day. Mentally and physically incapacitated by multiple sclerosis, he had no way of seeking help.

The man's brothers, who profited from his pension and Social Security disability checks, left him tied to his wheelchair all day.

Sherie Lammers, outreach director for the National MS Society's office in Pittsburgh, was appalled when she saw the scene in July.

If the man had been under 18, Ms. Lammers could have called the Office of Children, Families and Youth to intervene and obtain proper care for him. If he had been 60 or older, Ms. Lammers could have called the Older Adult Protective Services System.

But the man is 42, and Pennsylvania is one of only six states that does not have an adult protective services law, according to a tally by Vision For Equality, a Philadelphia-based disability services organization.

Unless the man files a protection from abuse order -- which Ms. Lammers said he's incapable of doing -- authorities won't step in, because he's not in immediate physical danger.

"I could give you 100 more stories like that," Ms. Lammers said. "We don't have anything for vulnerable citizens, people who are disabled."

Disability advocates across the state took notice last week when the story of Johnstown's Matthew Schrock garnered headlines. According to investigators, Mr. Schrock, 18, was starved and beaten by his sister and her boyfriend, who collected his disability checks as caregivers. Standing 6-foot-5, Mr. Schrock weighed just 118 pounds when he was taken to a hospital.

Nancy Murray, CEO of Achieva, which provides disability services in Western Pennsylvania, said that in less egregious and obvious situations, it's difficult for the police to intervene under the current laws if the victim is between 18 and 59.

Ms. Murray said she has been involved in many cases where abuse was suspected but the house appeared to be in order and the caregiver did not allow authorities to enter.

"There are two situations that I am following where if that legislation was passed tomorrow, I'd be at the police station later tomorrow saying, 'Can you come with me?' " Ms. Murray said.

That piece of legislation is state Senate Bill 1049, which -- along with a similar bill in the House -- has languished in committee and will be reintroduced when the new session begins in January.

The bill would create an Adult Protective Services branch within the Department of Public Welfare that could investigate claims of abuse and neglect of dependent adults. The bill also would authorize existing groups to be more aggressive in pursuing the allegations, the same way the system operates for children and seniors.

The Legislative Budget and Finance Committee recommended the creation of such a program in a 2003 study. Victims of abuse have told their horror stories to Harrisburg legislators several times.

But bills have stalled because of one major impediment -- money.

The Disability Rights Network of Pennsylvania estimates that once the program is up and running, it will cost about $6 million a year. And for a state in a budget crisis, those funds are hard to come by.

"It's strictly a money issue," said Sen. Pat Vance, R-Cumberland, who introduced the bill into the Aging and Youth Committee, which she chairs.

"I don't know of anybody who opposes the bill."

Ms. Vance said in this past session, the bill didn't make it out of appropriations. She said she will look for $6 million of existing funding in DPW that could be cut from another program and given to adult protective services.

"I think that's the only shot we have," Ms. Vance said.

DPW spokeswoman Stacey Witalec said the department strongly supports the bill but also is concerned about the funding.

"We've already had two rounds of cuts this year," Ms. Witalec said. "And there's no indication there won't be a third."

Disability advocates said they had heard the cries of poverty from Harrisburg, and they retorted by listing frivolous things that the state spends money on.

And they argue this legislation could benefit a significant swath of the state's citizens.

A 2007 study by Cornell University found that more than a million Pennsylvanians between the ages of 18 and 64 reported a disability -- and that figure doesn't include people living in institutions or group homes.

A pocket of disabled people live with caregivers who can't or won't treat them well.

In some cases, several people are living off of the disability check of one family member, who is locked away in a basement or bedroom. Sexual abuse sometimes occurs.

"We're in the middle of a deficit and all that, but people's lives have to count for something," Ms. Murray said.

"It is a core function of government to take care of its vulnerable citizens. ... The Legislature and the governor's office have fallen far short of their responsibilities."

Pennsylvania is one of six states that don't have laws to protect disabled people between the ages of 18 and 59. This story, as originally published Dec. 15, 2008, incorrectly stated the number of states.