Assisted Living Licensure Technical Changes Legislation Advances in 7th Special Session

Posted on December 16, 2020 by Kari Thurlow

Legislature Adjourns without Bridge Funding for LTC COVID-19 Response

The Minnesota Legislature met yesterday for the seventh special session of 2020, required as the Governor extended the Peacetime Emergency for another 30 days, and to pass the latest round of COVID-19 relief.  A $216 million COVID 19 relief package received bipartisan support in both the House and the Senate and is on its way to the Governor for his signature. The bill includes:

• $88 million for businesses in industries that were directly impacted, including bars, restaurants, and gyms. These businesses will receive a check mailed directly to them from the MN Dept of Revenue.
• $14 million for small business relief grants available through DEED. These grants are directed at businesses such as movie theaters and convention centers.
• $114 million in relief grants will be distributed to counties based on a per capita formula. Counties will then allocate that money to businesses that were directly or indirectly impacted.
• 13-week extension of unemployment benefits for Minnesota workers.

This legislation is meant to be a bridge to help these businesses and workers until (hoped-for) federal relief is passed by Congress.

The COVID-19 relief package did not include bridge funding to maintain assistance to long-term care facilities.  Rep. Tina Liebling (DFL-Rochester) proposed $6.4 million to maintain assistance for the state’s long-term care facilities. The funding would have paid for testing contracts and testing support staff, the MDH nurse triage line, and the DHS temporary staffing pool. The federal funds being used to support these initiatives are set to expire at the end of the month.

The proposal also included new funding to establish new MDH infection control strike teams and to cover the cost of twice-a-week testing of MDH surveyors.  It is not clear why legislators were unable to reach agreement on these proposals, and we expect continued conversation in the coming days about what impact this may have on COVID 19 response in our member settings. 

Legislators also passed a policy bill that includes technical changes to the Minn. Stat. 144G, the assisted living licensure statute and funding to BELTSS for implementation of the Licensed Assisted Living Director. This legislation addresses only those issues that were agreed to by all stakeholders and deemed necessary for the timely implementation of the Assisted Living License on August 1, 2021. 

Notably, the bill includes clarifying language for new construction, allowing for grandfathering with respect to building codes: “All prospective assisted living facility license applicants seeking a license and having new construction who have submitted a complete building permit application to the appropriate building code jurisdiction on or before July 31, 2021, may meet construction requirements in effect when the building permit application was submitted.” This will help avoid any costly disruptions on current assisted living developments.

Stakeholders agreed that this bill was not a vehicle for addressing larger substantive concerns and controversial issues.  Therefore, we fully expect additional legislation regarding assisted living settings in the 2021 session.

Yesterday’s special session is expected to be the final one of 2020, with the legislature heading back into regular session on January 5th.