News

The Minnesota Department of Health has new tools to assist providers in completing the license renewal process, which is underway this month. As you prepare for your assisted living license renewal, the Assisted Living License Renewal page has videos, checklists and other resources for providers preparing their license renewal application.

In Minnesota, landlords cannot prohibit a tenant from having a legal firearm. This is, at times, a safety concern within assisted living and housing communities. Several tools have recently been developed that may be helpful in related discussions with residents or potential residents.

License renewals for assisted living are now open. The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) received 115 applications during this first week. If you have not received your renewal information, contact MDH at health.assistedliving@state.mn.us.

The Long-Term Care Imperative recently completed an analysis of care center occupancy for the first quarter of this year. Compared to last year, it shows some improvement but nothing close to a return to pre-pandemic occupancy levels.

With the 1135 waiver ending on June 6, members will have until Oct. 6 to place Nursing Assistants on the state registry. Minnesota State and the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) communicate weekly updates to LeadingAge Minnesota regarding nursing assistant test sites as they open and increase their capacity.

Legacy Licensed Assisted Living Directors (LALD) are nearing their first license renewal. The Board of Executives for Long Term Services and Supports (BELTSS) will soon send information about the renewal process to those who must renew.

As part of Leading Age Minnesota’s Assisted Living Director Licensing Course, we are seeking assisted living settings to serve as field experience sites for assisted living director (ALD) students.

The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) will be sending you renewal information on or before May 1 for your assisted living license renewal for conversion licenses. MDH developed materials to help you prepare your assisted living license renewal application on the MDH website.

Periodically, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) may update the Nurse Aide Candidate Handbooks and Mock Skills to reflect the most current guidance.

Recently members have raised questions relating to resubmitting background studies for individuals hired during the COVID-19 waiver period, and this article addresses some of the common issues we are seeing.

The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) has more than enough funding to cover all currently moratorium exceptions projects proposed by nursing homes across the state.

The Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) and Public Consulting Group (PCG) are conducting policy research into the regulatory and financing issues affecting settings providing customized living services exempt from assisted living licensure law. affecting settings providing customized living services exempt from assisted living licensure law. The next step in the study is to conduct a survey to obtain additional stakeholder feedback on the Initial Research Report.

On Sunday, the Star Tribune ran a story covering the long-term care workforce crisis and the dynamics at the Capitol playing out this legislative session. The article outlines the $1 billion spent in Sen. Jim Abeler’s proposed human services bill. Specifically, it highlights the $358 million targeted at increasing the wages of professional caregivers in long-term care settings.

This week the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) provided LeadingAge Minnesota with an update on the status of care center rate notices for the rate year that began on Jan. 1. As expected, they will be releasing metro-area care center rate notices first and then sending out other rate notices as audits are finished.

The Minnesota Board of Executives for Long-Term Services and Supports (BELTSS) has announced the coming retirement of Randy Snyder, its long-time Executive Director, on July 6.

During in-person assisted living surveys, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) has increased its focus on side rails and other bed-attached assistive devices, often known as bedside rails, safety rails, grab bars, or assist bars.

In a series of weekly webinars over the past several weeks, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) provided detailed information about emergency preparedness expectations for assisted living settings and what to anticipate when surveyed. You can review the five emergency preparedness presentations on the MDH website.

LeadingAge Minnesota members virtually gathered for our largest advocacy event of the year, the Day at the Capitol. Aging services providers from across the state met with over 50 lawmakers, including several Senate and House legislative leaders, to make their voices heard and advance important policy initiatives for seniors and their caregivers.

As long-term care settings face staffing shortages throughout the state, Governor Walz set a goal in Dec. 2021 to recruit and train 1,000 new certified nursing assistants (CNAs) through the Next Generation Nursing Assistant initiative. On Tuesday, Governor Walz joined CNAs and other health care professionals at St. Paul College to announce the initiative surpassed its goal.

On behalf of the Long-Term Care Imperative, we are sharing a petition to support an important bill that would help raise your wages and address the staff shortage in senior care.