Work to Craft Assisted Living Licensure Technical Legislation Stalls

Posted on March 10, 2021 by Kari Thurlow

Over the past several weeks, the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) has convened provider, consumer and agency stakeholders in a series of meetings to identify additional changes to the assisted living licensure law in order to pass a bill during the 2021 legislative session. The goal was to reach stakeholder consensus on a set of changes that are critical to the smooth, timely implementation of the assisted living licensure law later this year and work with lawmakers to pass those changes in this legislative session.

Progress on this work stalled late last week after some consumer advocacy stakeholder groups indicated they would not support legislation that would implement proposals developed in this consensus process. At this point, it is not clear whether there is a path forward to reviving these proposals, given that the first legislative committee deadline is March 12.

Stakeholders submitted over 200 individual statutory or conceptual modifications to the assisted living licensure statute, with a share commitment to only advance those items that had complete consensus among all parties. 

More than ten meetings were held between Feb. 12 and March 2. Over the course of those discussions, stakeholders agreed to more than 20 modifications to the assisted living licensure law and related statutes. Twenty-four issues were discussed, but stakeholders could not reach consensus. Some of the key items identified in the consensus items were as follows:

• Language to clarify outdoor space requirements for assisted living with dementia care providers. The current statute mistakenly applies new outdoor space requirements to existing providers. The stakeholders had identified language to address this issue and only apply outdoor space requirements to new providers.
• Language to incorporate important recommended coordination with the Office of the Ombudsman for Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities to protect resident rights.  For example, the current statute does not ensure protections from retaliation for seeking services from that office.
• Several clarifying technical changes needed to help inform the application process for assisted living licensure. 

MDH staff incorporated the consensus items into a draft bill and requested a letter of agreement to be signed by all stakeholders to show each organization’s agreement to the consensus language. Legislators have indicated that such a letter is necessary to move the language forward during this session. However, several consumer advocacy stakeholders have indicated their unwillingness to sign such a letter. Here are links to the responses:

• Office of Ombudsman for Long Term Care
• Joint Response from AARP, Alzheimer’s Association, Legal Aid and Minnesota Elder Justice
• Elder Voice Family Advocates

From the perspective of LeadingAge Minnesota and the Long-Term Care Imperative, these responses effectively have stalled any ability for this consensus bill to move forward in this legislative session. 

While the path forward is not clear, we continue to work with MDH and stakeholders on key issues related to assisted living licensure. We remain committed to a smooth implementation process. Stay tuned for additional updates.