Elderly complain searches by TSA humiliate, intrude

NEW YORK – With age come such things as catheters, colostomy bags and adult diapers. Now add another indignity to getting old – having to drop your pants and show these things to a complete stranger.

Two women in their 80s put the Transportation Security Administration on the defensive this week by going public about their embarrassment during screenings in a private room at Kennedy Airport. One claimed she was forced to lower her pants and underwear in front of an agent so that her back brace could be inspected. Another said agents made her pull down her waistband to show her colostomy bag.

While not confirming some of the details, the TSA said a preliminary review shows officers followed the agency’s procedures in both cases.

“You have pacemakers, you have artificial hips, you have artificial knees,” said Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee. “As we get older and we keep ourselves together, it’s going to take more and more surgery. There’s going to be more and more medical improvements, but that can create what appears to be a security issue.”

Ruth Sherman, 88, of Sunrise, Fla., said she was mortified when inspectors pulled her aside and asked about the bulge in her pants as she arrived for a flight to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Nov. 28.

“I said, ‘I have a bag here,’ ” she said on Monday, pointing to the bulge, “They didn’t understand.”

She said they escorted her to another room where two female agents “made me lower my sweatpants, and I was really very humiliated.” The next day, agents took 85-year-old Lenore Zimmerman, of Long Beach, N.Y., into a private room to remove her back brace for screening after she decided against going through a scanning machine because of her heart defibrillator. Zimmerman said she had to raise her blouse and lower her pants and underwear for a female TSA agent.

The TSA said that it is still investigating the cases. “Our officers are committed to treating every passenger with dignity and respect,” the agency said in a statement.