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Picture a world where residents can explore locations and experiences around the world as if they were there in person. Imagine what it would like to create experiences for residents that give them a sense of personal freedom, combat loneliness and depression, and create bonds with their fellow tenants who feel their passion for life reignited. This world exists, right now, through Virtual Reality. 

A new webinar will feature the latest upgrades to AgingServicesJobs.Org, many of which are based on the excellence feedback from LeadingAge Minnesota members. Sign up today

The massive shift that is about to take place in Medicare will affect hundreds of thousands of Minnesota enrollees, including some of the seniors you serve. Medicare Cost Plans will end in December 2018 and seniors affected by this change will need to enroll in new Medicare coverage for 2019. To help ensure a seamless transition, the State of Minnesota has developed helpful publications that you can share with your residents and families.  

The Minnesota Department of Health is providing a free webinar to LeadingAge Minnesota members on the Home and Community-Based Services Scholarship program grant application process. Register today!

Stratis Health, as part of Lake Superior Quality Innovation Network, is partnering with the Minnesota Area Agencies on Aging and Juniper to offer Diabetes Self-Management workshops. These workshops are a great way to help your clients, residents, and community manage their diabetes. 

Two new reports demonstrate how Area Agencies on Aging across the country are responding to shifting demographics and challenges in their communities. 

LeadingAge Minnesota is working with the Minnesota Department of Health and other stakeholders to develop another series of provider-surveyor joint training sessions for care centers. Specific locations are still being finalized, but the dates are confirmed: Oct. 30, Oct. 31, Nov. 1, Nov. 8 and Nov. 9. There will be two metro sessions, and one each in northern, central and southern Minnesota. 

LeadingAge recently met with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) regarding the Skilled Nursing Facility Quality Reporting Program (QRP) to help them better understand the noncompliance experience and identify process improvements to help reduce noncompliance in future years. 

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced a proposed rule this week to relieve burden on healthcare providers by removing unnecessary, obsolete or excessively burdensome Medicare compliance requirements for healthcare facilities. 

Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) surveyors will be piloting new survey forms over the next six weeks. 

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) shared survey guidance relating to handwashing while assisting residents at meal time and to eye drop expiration dating. 

The Minnesota Department of Health is providing a free webinar on the Home and Community-Based Services Scholarship grant application process to LeadingAge Minnesota members. The webinar takes place Sept. 26 from 1 p.m. – 2 p.m. Register today!

The 2018 Annual Meeting & Leadership Forum is next week, Sept. 18-21 at Madden’s in Brainerd and end of business today is the last day to pre-register. 

More than 350 senior living professionals have signed on as Senior Living Works Ambassadors! Will you be next? 

Will you stand up for housing funding for older adults? Congress is negotiating the differences between House and Senate versions of the fiscal year 2019 HUD appropriations bill that will determine how much funding will be available next year for affordable housing. 

Members can sign up today for a webinar on the newest upgrades to AgingServicesJobs.Org.

The first 90 days of a new job can be the hardest, especially for nursing assistants. A Peer Mentor program has helped Grand Village in Grand Rapids increase their 90-day retention rate to 86 percent and decrease nursing assistant turnover by 20 percent in one year.  

The temporary protected status provided to immigrants from El Salvador, Nicaragua, Haiti and other countries is being terminated. Many of these foreign-born people, who work in the long-term services and supports field, will face deportation.

LeadingAge recently pointed out technical barriers to skilled nursing facilities’ compliance with quality reporting required under the IMPACT Act and requested a meeting with the Centers of Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to discuss solutions that would improve their ability to comply. 

A hearing last week in the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight explored whether federal regulations for nursing homes were tough enough. 

The Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) plans to submit a revised State Transition Plan for the Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Settings rule to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) after a 30-day public comment period. The comment period is now open and comments are due by 4 p.m. on Oct. 10. 

The Nominating Committee has presented its 2019 Nomination Slate for the LeadingAge Minnesota Board of Directors and recipients of Lifetime Honorary Memberships. Members will vote on the slate at this year’s Annual Business Meeting that takes place on Thursday, Sept. 20 from 7:30 a.m. – 8:30 a.m. in the Viking Room at Madden’s in Brainerd. See the slate and learn more about the candidates: 

Nearly half of all Americans are concerned that they will not have enough money to live on during retirement. President Donald Trump last week signed an executive order that could help expand access to workplace retirement plans for workers and extend their retirement savings. 

The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) has announced the adoption of the revised Minnesota Food Code that will be effective Jan. 1, 2019. We have invited MDH to join our Housing Committee meeting on Sept. 13 to share more details on the revised code and its implementation.   

The Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) is conducting a survey on access to transportation services for Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) waiver recipients. The survey is part of a larger study of transportation services for HCBS waiver recipients that will inform a report to the 2019 Legislature.  

Time is running out to register for the 2018 Annual Meeting & Leadership Forum. Wednesday, Sept. 12 is the last day to pre-register for the conference, which features an incredible line-up of speakers on marketplace trends, technology, mental health, Medicare Advantage and special needs plans, succession planning, contract negotiation/management and much more! 

The Minnesota Department of Health is soliciting grant proposals from providers of adult day care, home care, and housing with services to provide educational scholarships for their employees. Applications are due by Friday, Oct. 19. 

The U.S. Senate last week passed a combined spending bill that contains some good news in terms of Fiscal Year 2019 funding for home and community-based services. 

The new AgingServicesJobs.Org platform continues to receive upgrades as the vendor, WorkFountain, follows a continuous improvement process. 

The OnTrack Nursing Assistant Training program is seeing high satisfaction among its users. A recent survey showed 96 percent were satisfied with the Student Curriculum delivered in the new online and on-demand program and 92 percent where satisfied with RN Train the Trainer program that is also online and on-demand.