DHS Announces Plan for Care Center Rate Notices for 2023

Posted on October 27, 2022 by Jeff Bostic

Most care centers will receive an official rate notice for 2023 in January, according to a Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) announcement.

Earlier this week, DHS sent a document to providers with information on how it will issue care center rate notices for the year that begins on Jan. 1, 2023.

While acknowledging that the process has fallen far behind the expected timeline, DHS indicates that they intend to provide the vast majority of care centers an official rate notice for the calendar year 2023 by some point in January next year. That will simplify private pay billing compared to 2022 and eliminate much of the need for retroactive billing or settling up to revised rates with those clients.

The Details

The specifics of the plan will be different depending on provider circumstances.

• DHS still plans to issue final, fully-audited rate notices to most Twin Cities metro area care centers by Jan. 1.
• DHS plans to issue rate notices based on unaudited cost report data to most of the rest of the care centers in the state by some point in January.
• Care centers with substantial rate increases and where the Department expects significant audit adjustments will not receive a rate notice. Instead, they will get an interim Medicaid payment effective Jan. 1, similar to the process for Greater Minnesota care centers in 2022

What's Next

We will be providing more information about what this process means for notice to private pay and what those notices should say as we get closer to Jan. 1 and the implementation of the new rates. All care centers should plan on sending some form of notice by Jan. 1 because that step is required to be paid the Medicaid increase.

One reason for the delay in getting audits completed and rate notices issued is the delay in the rate notice deadline that DHS has granted in the last two years due to the impact of the pandemic. The cost report online form for the year ending Sept. 30, 2022, has been posted on the DHS Nursing Facility Portal. This year the deadline for submission of the Cost Report and associated material is the usual date of Feb. 1 next year, and DHS will not be extending that date.