News

This week, the Minnesota Senate discussed two bills aimed at helping to resolve the workforce crisis in long-term care. The proposals contain funding for the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE), hiring and retention bonuses, education and training grants, temporary regulatory changes for retired and out-of-state nurses to practice, modification of training requirements in long-term care settings, and a correction program for sites to work with MDH on technical issues.

The Next Generation Nursing Assistant Training Program has successfully recruited over 1000 individuals into its no-cost training programs throughout the state. Providers should begin to position themselves to connect with students as they complete their training in the upcoming weeks.

Mohamed Wasuge from Augustana Regent in Burnsville, MN, was named the Caregiver of the Year by LeadingAge Minnesota at our annual Institute & Expo. 

On Jan. 6, the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) and the Minnesota Board on Aging updated the pre-admission screening criteria for people with mental illness and developmental disabilities before admission to a nursing home.

OSHA has officially withdrawn its Vaccination and Testing Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) in light of the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision forbidding OHSA from enforcing it. The standard would have applied to all employers with 100 or more employees and required businesses to implement a vaccine mandate or weekly testing option for all employees.

The Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) has postponed the Wednesday, Feb. 2, transition date for Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) providers to return to fingerprint-based background studies.

The 2022 Institute & Expo is less than three weeks away, and we are looking forward to seeing so many of our members again after two years. There is still time to register your organization and staff for this multi-day conference which is in person at RiverCentre in St. Paul Feb. 9-11 and virtually Feb. 22-24. The registration deadline is Monday, Jan. 31.

As we all know, the U.S. Supreme Court has blocked OSHA from enforcing the OSHA Vaccination and Testing Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) proposed in Nov. 2021. In addition, the June 2021 OSHA Healthcare ETS expired on Dec. 21, 2021, except for all of the non-recordkeeping provisions. 

Last week, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) issued a Notice to Minnesota Health Care Providers of Optional COVID-19 Relief with relevance for hospitals and nursing homes.

Nursing homes subject to CMS Rule; Mandate does not apply to assisted living or other HCBS settings

Last Friday, the US Supreme Court heard lengthy oral arguments concerning challenges to the CMS Omnibus COVID-19 Health Care Staff Vaccination rule and OSHA Vaccination and Testing Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS). Both of these cases were before the court on emergency petitions to determine whether injunctions should be in place, pending trials on the merits of challenges to the respective rules.

On Jan. 7, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) modified their recommendations for when a booster dose of the Moderna vaccine should be administered, and the CDC has published updated information. The booster recommendations are the same for both Pfizer and Moderna with this update.

Critical Steps Support SNF Operations; Advocacy for Assisted Living Continues

Earlier this week, Gov. Tim Walz announced two new steps his administration will take to offer financial assistance for care centers as the battle against COVID-19 continues.

Have you ever noticed how it warmed your heart when someone appreciates you? Research shows that expressing gratitude to someone who has done something to enrich your life (no matter how big or small) significantly impacts both the giver and the receiver.

As previously reported, CMS has announced that it will begin enforcing its Omnibus COVID-19 Health Care Staff Vaccination mandate for facilities located in all states where the rule is not currently blocked by a legal injunction, including Minnesota. CMS has not published new information over the past several days, but we wanted to share what we know for any readers who missed our story last week.

We continue to monitor the status of the OSHA emergency temporary standards relating to COVID-19, and here is the latest available information.

On the Minnesota Department of Health’s (MDH) long-term care call this week, the Department discussed the updated CDC guidance released on Dec. 23. It appears the CDC guidance will be adopted for our settings. MDH reported it is the intention of CMS to revise the current memos to be in alignment with this guidance. The publication timeline for updated CMS memo(s) is unknown.

Updated return-to-work guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has significantly changed from its last release. In the updated information, return to work is based upon several different variables including those who test positive, those who have been exposed, the staffing situation within the organization, and the vaccination and booster status of the health care worker (HCW).

Board of Directors Concludes National Search; Names New Association Leader

SAINT PAUL, MN (Dec. 30, 2021) – LeadingAge Minnesota has selected Kari Thurlow as its new President and Chief Executive Officer.

Thurlow, who currently serves as the Senior Vice President of Advocacy at LeadingAge Minnesota, begins her role with LeadingAge Minnesota on Jan. 3, 2022.

You have various emergency staffing resources available should you need to utilize them during the holidays.

This time of year, your senior care communities are full of fun and festivity as family and friends celebrate with the residents you serve. While joyous, vigilance is essential; the increase in visitors during this period of high transition and increased prevalence of the Omicron variant poses potential complications.

Our team is keeping a close watch for news about the CMS staff vaccination mandate and the OSHA vaccine-or-test emergency temporary standard. Here is the latest information about the status and enforcement of these two requirements.