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We hope you get to meet Kelly at LeadingAge Minnesota’s 2026 Institute next month! In the meantime, here are five things to know about our new director of assisted living services:

DHS announced this week that, in addition to the provider enrollment freeze for what they have deemed 13 high-risk categories, all claims submitted for services within these categories will be suspended pending pre-payment review. DHS also confirmed high-risk providers will be subject to an off-cycle revalidation process.

Vista Prairie Communities is pleased to announce the promotion of Lacie Lampman to Executive Director of Vista Prairie at Ridgeway.

Is this your year to secure new grant funding? We’ve just updated our members-only Grant Grid with five new funding opportunities and now is a great time to take a look.

Yesterday, Jan. 14, the U.S. State Department announced a pause on immigrant visa processing for applicants from 75 countries, a change that may affect some employment-based green card cases used by long-term care providers to recruit international health care professionals. The pause is scheduled to take effect on Jan. 21.

CMS has recently moved nursing home survey and certification data into its new cloud-based system, iQIES (Internet Quality Improvement and Evaluation System). While this modernization is intended to improve data quality and reliability, the transition has resulted in data discrepancies that may be visible on Nursing Home Care Compare.

Late last year, health insurer UCARE announced that due to mounting financial losses they would be shutting down operations.  They are now officially in court ordered “rehabilitation” which has put MDH in charge of all UCARE operations.

As the state continues to battle both substantiated and alleged claims of Medicaid fraud, DHS has announced a freeze on new provider enrollments in 13 categories of Medicaid-funded services as part of efforts to strengthen program integrity and address Medicaid fraud.

Due to IT issues at DHS, the annual nursing home cost report for the report year ending September 30, 2025, is not yet available on the Nursing Facility Provider Portal. Given that the due date of February 1 is coming up, DHS is implementing an alternative process for collecting the data this year.

In 2024, Vista Prairie Communities expanded the use of the Minnesota Resident Quality of Life and Family Satisfaction Surveys to three of their assisted living communities in Wisconsin and Iowa in partnership with Vital Research.

DHS this week provided updates regarding claims processing related to their November announcement of the State contracting with Optum, a third-party vendor, to conduct prepayment reviews of the 14 high-risk Medicaid services named in the executive order issued by Governor Walz.

As communities across Minnesota respond to increased immigration enforcement activity and related events, many organizations are navigating heightened concern, questions, and uncertainty. To support members, LeadingAge Minnesota is sharing communication templates designed to help organizations respond thoughtfully and compassionately.

The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) has announced the upcoming launch of the Assisted Living Competitive Grant Program, established under new legislation effective Jan. 1, 2026 (see Minnesota Statutes, section 144G.31). This program supports projects and initiatives that improve resident quality of care and outcomes in assisted living settings licensed under Minnesota Statutes, chapter 144G, or organizations with experience in assisted living operations, compliance, resident needs, or best practices.

Some members are navigating increased questions related to immigration enforcement activity reported in communities across the state—including both metro and greater Minnesota communities with higher concentrations of immigrant populations. While LeadingAge Minnesota is currently not aware of any senior living or long-term care facilities with reported ICE raids, we also know that some employers are seeing related activity—document requests or staff concerns stemming from encounters outside of work—and are seeking ways to respond proactively and compassionately.  

OnTrack Medication Aide (TMA) Training is now available. Launching today, Jan. 1, 2026, this new hybrid Medication Aide training program—approved by the Minnesota Department of Health—expands career pathways for caregivers and provides members with a flexible, statewide TMA training option.

AscendRural, a program of Sourcewell, is inviting rural senior-serving nonprofits and government agencies to apply for their Senior Care Community Cohort — a guided pathway focused on identifying high-potential technology solutions that solve your organization’s most critical problems.

In assisted living settings, unlicensed staff are often the first to respond to resident situations. LeadingAge Minnesota developed member supports to assist in clarifying practical expectations for incident response, reinforcing the use of the airway, breathing, circulation (ABCs), and providing education and tools that help organizations make decisions about when, and whether, to move a resident after a fall.

OnTrack Medication Aide (TMA) Training launches January 1, 2026. Newly approved by the Minnesota Department of Health, this hybrid medication aide training program was developed in response to member requests for accessible, online training and expands career advancement opportunities for caregivers across the state.

The Minnesota Department of Human Services announced on Tuesday that they will implement a licensing pause for adult day settings starting Feb. 1, 2026.

As we reported previously, DHS has informed LeadingAge MN that, due to some internal IT challenges, they will not publish Jan. 1, 2026 nursing home Medicaid rate notices during the month of December. Nursing homes need to provide a notice to their private pay residents before the rate increase is effective on Jan. 1, even if the amount of increase is not known.

Mark your calendar now and join us for these webinars happening in January:

The Low-Income Rental Classification (LIRC) program provides a reduced property tax class rate for qualifying rental housing and can lower property tax obligations.

In November, voters in Duluth, Minnesota approved a Right to Repair ballot initiative, granting tenants a right to repair certain defects in residential rental units when applicable requirements are met.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has indefinitely suspended the Skilled Nursing Facility Off-Cycle Revalidation required by January 1, 2026. It is important to note that only the January 1 (“off-cycle”) compliance date has been suspended.

Today, Minnesota officials released its fall economic forecast, which will inform state lawmakers’ priorities in 2026. 

When Benedictine faced persistent staffing shortages in its rural North Dakota locations, it found an unexpected but powerful partner: Cherokee Federal.

The LeadingAge Minnesota Foundation is excited to offer up to 143 PockeTalk translation devices—at no cost—to member providers. These devices support New Americans with limited English proficiency who are working in long-term care roles by improving language access in real time.

Members who provide HUD subsidized housing may have received a letter dated November 25, 2025 from HUD Secretary E. Scott Turner addressing the current administration’s guidance related to criminal background screenings for prospective tenants.

The MN Department of Revenue has recently reorganized their website content and added more training resources to help customers navigate the CRP system.

Federal enforcement activities in Minnesota have intensified following national directives expanding expedited removal and activating multi-agency Homeland Security task forces.