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The updated MDS 3.0 Resident Assessment Instrument (RAI) user manual (version 1.18.11) was released in early April by CMS and will become effective Oct. 1. Watch for more information this month on our training timeline.

The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) and the Department of Human Services (DHS) have postponed the webinar scheduled for 1 p.m. on April 17 to provide information on nursing home topics including:

• Receivership
• Closure and emergency relocation procedures
• The role of governing board

On Wednesday of this week, a group of LeadingAge Minnesota members attended a “Mini Day at the Capitol” in an effort to continually share our stories and drive legislative action. They had the opportunity to meet with their lawmakers to discuss our long-term care policy priorities and share their stories.

On April 7, the Minnesota Department of Human Services released Bulletin #23-21-08: DHS Announces Key MHCP Eligibility Policies during the Unwinding Period (PDF), which announces timelines for restarting Medical Assistance renewals after Public Health Emergency continuous coverage requirements end. These timelines also apply to reassessments for waiver and AC programs, including financial eligibility redeterminations for the AC program.

The deadline for registering a team for this year’s ICan Quality Improvement Contest is May 1. The contest involves developing and implementing a Quality Improvement project identified and led by front-line staff.

In a recent bulletin, the Department of Human Services (DHS) reminded providers that effective Jan. 11, 2021, an age limitation was applied to new customized living (CL) services settings for Brain Injury (BI) and Community Access for Disability Inclusion (CADI) waiver programs. Customized living services settings operational on or after Jan. 11, 2021, are limited to serving people on the BI and CADI waivers who are age 55 and older. This change was announced in the Implementation of the HCBS rule tiered standards, effective Jan. 11, 2021.

LeadingAge Minnesota is launching a statewide digital advocacy campaign featuring a series of videos that tell the stories of caregivers and seniors. The goal of the campaign is to drive advocacy at a critical time in the legislative session.

New data shows that statewide nurse aide knowledge test pass rates have increased by over 8% in the first quarter of 2023. This means more nursing assistants have been successfully certified and placed on the registry.

The Minnesota Department of Health’s Health Regulation Division (HRD) will host the Board of Executives for Long-Term Care Services and Supports (BELTSS) for a webinar on Wednesday, April 19, at noon to present the most frequently asked questions about Licensed Assisted Living Director (LALD) licensure and practice requirements.

District Meetings are the perfect opportunity to build relationships with your regional colleagues, stay up-to-date on important issues that impact your work and community, and gain helpful resources to make your work easier. They also serve as an essential governance function of your association.

Our national partners at LeadingAge continue to push forward with the Aging Services Workforce Now advocacy campaign launched last year. A recent member workforce poll conducted by LeadingAge showed the shortage of caregiving professionals across aging services is still a true crisis that is not improving. That's why it's critical that we tackle our workforce challenges at every level of government, including in Washington, DC.

The Scheduling Software Playbook is the first in a series of workforce technology solution playbooks designed to assist you in identifying technology solutions to help address the workforce crisis.

The LeadingAge Minnesota Foundation team will be using more than $72,000 to continue offering free Mental Health First Aid training to members, through the Minnesota Department of Health’s Mental Health Care Professionals Grant program.

On March 30, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released QSO-23-10-NH, which rescinds QSO-20-31-NH and provides updated guidance on enforcement for infection control non-compliance. As a result, enforcement actions are more severe than before when cited under F880 and/or F887.

WCCO political analyst Blois Olson hosted a new Fluence Forum, a conversation about the caregiving crisis in Minnesota.

LeadingAge Minnesota continues to use earned media to garner support for our legislative agenda and keep pressure on lawmakers. In addition, we’ve recently launched a paid media campaign in strategically targeted areas.

Earlier this week, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) published the annual proposed rule that updates the Prospective Payment System (PPS) rates for care centers. The rule calls for an update in the rates starting Oct. 1, which averages 3.7%.

On Monday, the Senate Human Services Committee passed its omnibus finance bill with key differences from the House’s version.

On Thursday afternoon, several nursing home providers from across the state visited the Capitol to support funding for nursing homes in the House Human Services bill. 

This complimentary, members-only resource includes a short video with an accompanying exercise and discussion handout. Gather your nurses, particularly staff nurses and direct care nurses, to watch the Delegation and Assignment recording and work through the exercise together. 

On March 28, US Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra appeared before the House Ways and Means Committee to discuss the President’s FY24 budget proposal. Top aging services issues were discussed, such as the Three-Day Hospital Stay Requirement, Nursing Home Mandatory Staffing Ratios, and Home and Community Based Services (HCBS).

The Minnesota House Human Services Committee released its omnibus finance bill this week. The budget bill includes some priority legislation like Elderly Waiver funding and a PACE rate study but stops short of investing in skilled nursing care for older adults.

This new resource includes a 10-minute recording with an accompanying exercise and discussion handout. Gather your nurses, particularly staff nurses and direct care nurses, to watch the recording and work through the exercise together.

Gene Gustason, a long-time LeadingAge Minnesota member, has announced his retirement from the Stewartville Care Center effective at the end of March. He completes his career in the sector after 29 years at the skilled nursing setting in Stewartville. The Stewartville Care Center is an 85-bed skilled nursing facility for residential and rehabilitative care.

During National Patient Safety Awareness Week, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) highlighted their renewed focus on patient safety because harm is still too common and often preventable in a blog published on its website. Progress in patient safety has significantly declined since the beginning of the pandemic erasing previous patient safety gains.

Governor Tim Walz recently updated his budget proposal and introduced some new spending initiatives after the most recent budget forecast was released. Unfortunately, those initiatives do not include a rate increase for care centers despite the ongoing staffing and financial challenges. Despite the lack of support from the Governor, the Long-Term Care Imperative continues to work with legislators to advocate for this vitally needed funding.

This week, legislative leaders and Governor Walz announced they had reached global budget targets for creating Minnesota’s biennial budget (FY2023-2025). This agreement sets the stage for the Legislature to spend the state’s $17.6 billion surplus. According to the agreement, human services has been given a $1.3 billion target for the two-year period, and health care an additional $755 million.

This new resource includes a 10-minute recording with an accompanying exercise and discussion handout. Gather your nurses, particularly staff nurses and direct care nurses, to watch the recording and work through the exercise together.

Jennifer Marcus of Vista Prairie Communities has been promoted to the newly created position of Regional Director of Operations within her organization.

Temporary nurse aides who worked under the 1135 CMS waiver have until Aug. 5 to be placed on the Nursing Assistant Registry. OnTrack Nursing Assistant Training is here to help providers with this transition process.