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Due to COVID-19, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) has cancelled the Assisted Living Licensure Rules Advisory Committee meeting scheduled for March 26.  

While the license renewal cycle for nursing home administrators historically activates in May, the Minnesota Board of Examiners for Nursing Home Administrators (BENHA) recognizes that these are unprecedented times. In a news release distributed this week, BENHA provided the following counsel regarding continuing education or clock hours to renew your license:  

Recognizing the number of update calls you participate in mid-week, we have moved our COVID-19 HUDDLE to Fridays.

In response to COVID-19, Governor Tim Walz has released a series of Executive Orders. We have provided summaries of these via our daily update emails. Below you will find links to the Executive Orders that affect you and your staff: 

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has directed state agencies to suspend standard surveys for long term care facilities (nursing homes), hospitals, home health agencies, ICFs, and hospices during a 3-week prioritization period from March 20–April 10.  

In response to the growing need for COVID-19 training and education, our online training partner EduCare released a new course focused on COVID-19 symptoms and reporting protocols, proper preparation protocols, state infection prevention and control practices and what to do if you suspect a respiratory illness.  

The American Association of Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), which include many plans that offer Medicare Advantage plans to Minnesota consumers, recently announced that they are going to be matching the recent “blanket” CMS waivers on the three day stay and benefit period requirements. 

As of March 18, HUD has restarted routine processing and approval of Section 202 PRAC rent adjustments to increase Reserve for Replacement deposits. There have been several updates to field office procedures for reviewing Capital Needs Assessments (CNAs) and determining how capital needs should be reflected in annual PRAC project operating rents.   

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced it is implementing exceptions and extensions for upcoming measure reporting and data submission deadlines for several quality reporting programs.  

The deadline to apply for the first round of emergency assistance funding from the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), a total of $50 million for health care provider, is midnight TODAY.  

As part of the national emergency declaration in response to COVID-19, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced that they are waiving the three-day hospital stay requirement before a Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) Medicare A stay. 

At an Assisted Living Licensure Rulemaking Advisory Task Force meeting last week, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) reported that it is hoping to have a complete draft rule prepared and posted to its website and sent to the Revisor by mid-April.  

Now more than ever, staff may be experiencing housing, food, and childcare insecurities. If you have staff who need additional support from community organizations such as Emergency Housing Assistance, Minnesota Food Helpline, or energy assistance programs, please see the Community Support Resource Guide for referral sources.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a National Nursing Home Initiative that will coordinate and enhance civil and criminal efforts to pursue nursing homes that provide grossly substandard care to their residents. 

It’s a statistic that can’t be ignored: 54% of the 14.4 million middle-income older adults in 2029 will lack the financial resources to pay for seniors housing and care. We know it will take public and private collaboration to address this looming crisis. We also know there are steps providers should be taking now to be best positioned for these partnerships.  

Regulations. Payment. Consumers. What do they all have common? Quality. You need a comprehensive strategy for continuous quality improvement, and we have the solution. Your first step to Performance Excellence in Aging Services begins March 30.  

The development of an Assisted Living Resident and Family Survey and Assisted Living Report Card are well underway, reported Peter Spuit, Home & Community Based Services Program Consultant for the Aging and Adult Services Division at the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS), at last week’s LeadingAge Minnesota Assisted Living Committee meeting.  

More than 100 nursing homes across Minnesota, including several LeadingAge Minnesota members, have begun kicking off 36 projects to promote better care and quality of life for their residents. The Performance-based Incentive Payment Program (PIPP) projects, funded by the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS), range from efforts to improve mental health and social connections to reducing falls and infections.  

The American Red Cross will stop offering nursing assistant training courses in April. Organizations that utilized the Red Cross courses are encouraged to reach out to OnTrack Nursing Assistant Training to continue developing a pipeline of caregivers.  

The Minnesota Board of Examiners for Nursing Home Administrators (BENHA) has published the proposed rule for Licensed Assisted Living Directors and is accepting public comments through May 4. 

A bill to enhance Elderly Waiver rates to better reflect the actual cost of care passed its first hurdle on Monday in the Minnesota House Long-Term Care Committee.   

LeadingAge is seeking feedback from affordable housing providers on a proposal to transition five-year Section 202 Project Rental Assistance Contracts (PRACs) from their current annual renewal cycle with budget-based rent increases to a five-year renewal cycle subject to annual appropriations with an operating cost adjustment factor.  

In a word, a lot. The senior housing market is different than almost any other, and sales and marketing professionals need specific skills to effectively position your community and assist consumers in one of the most important decisions of their life.  

Dr. Sharon Aadalen, a member of the Board of Directors for Jones-Harrison in Minneapolis, was recently named Board Trustee of the Year by LeadingAge Minnesota. 

Have you signed up for our annual Day at the Capitol yet? It's not too late! Join us at the Capitol on March 19 to show lawmakers that we are committed partners in our shared goal to assure access to safe, quality care for older Minnesotans in the communities they call home.   

We are in the process of filling our open Director of Clinical Care/Nurse Consultant position. In the meantime, we are pleased to announce that Kari Everson, RN, BSN, MSN, MHA, LNHA, has been engaged by LeadingAge Minnesota to provide clinical support to our members until a permanent replacement is found.   

Minnesota’s latest budget forecast shows a slight increase in the projected budget surplus - $1.513 billion, up $181 million since November. What does this mean for this legislative session and aging services providers?  

The House Health and Human Services Policy Committee last week heard a bill to expand the Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) employee scholarship program to allow loan forgiveness and expenses related to obtaining a licensed assisted living director credential.  

Ecumen advanced legislation last week to launch a pilot project that will provide, short-term shelter, safety and advocacy for older adults affected by elder abuse.  

Effective March 1, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) will impose Discretionary Denial Payment for New Admissions (DDPNA) on an accelerated basis for actual-harm level citations. The CMS-Chicago regional office has directed survey agencies in all Region V states (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin) to implement this new policy, citing a heightened level of surveys resulting in a deficiency at scope/severity level G or above during federal fiscal year 2019.