News

As of Jan. 27, 2025, the nurse aide knowledge test became available in Spanish, Somali, and Hmong, in addition to English, as allowed by Minnesota Statutes, section 144A.61.

The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) has contracted with All Clear Emergency Management to offer free in-person technical assistance for implementing continuity of operations planning.

Applications are now being accepted for the State Live Well at Home Grants. Amongst eligible applicants are providers of Adult Day Services and Assisted Living. A Responders’ Conference will be offered January 27, with an application deadline of April 4, 2025.

The Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) has contracted with All Clear Emergency Management to offer free in-person technical assistance for implementing continuity of operations planning.

The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) has launched the Employer Engagement Team to address workforce challenges by connecting employers with skilled workers, particularly in the Drive for 5 fields: caring professions, education, manufacturing, technology, and trades.

With our coldest months ahead, just a reminder that the 2023 legislature passed a law, which took effect in 2024, requiring landlords to keep their units heated to a minimum temperature of 68 degrees from Oct. 1 through April 30.

The next cycle for the Minnesota Long-Term Care Nurse Loan Forgiveness Program is now open. The program provides funds to repay qualified educational loans for eligible RNs and LPNs.

Effective Jan. 1, 2025, if your facility charges pet fees or deposits, your rental lease or contract will be required to disclose that these fees or charges are prohibited for, and do not apply to, service and support animals.

DHS late last week posted Medicaid rate notices for most nursing homes for the rate year beginning Jan. 1, 2025 on the nursing facility portal.

The next cycle for the Minnesota Long-Term Care Nurse Loan Forgiveness Program is now open. The program provides funds to repay qualified educational loans for eligible RNs and LPNs.

The Uniform Disclosure of Assisted Living Services and Amenities (UDALSA) is an important communication tool for providers to inform prospective residents and their families about what their Assisted Living Facility provides.

A recently released fact sheet by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration helps providers better understand and recognize the symptoms of three of the most common serious mental illnesses: schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depressive disorder.

The 21st Century Cures Act, Public Law 114–255 (PDF), requires providers of personal care, including personal care assistance (PCA) and some waiver services and home health care providers to use electronic visit verification (EVV) to document that people are receiving the services that are billed to the state. Minnesota began implementing EVV on June 20, 2022.

As of Monday, Oct. 21, DHS has limited account access to NETStudy 2.0 for providers who submitted background study applications between Sept. 3 and Sept. 6, 2024; were unable to pay for those studies due to a DHS technical system issue; and have not yet paid for those studies.

Changes were made to the statutes regarding Informal Dispute Resolution (IDR) and Independent Informal Dispute Resolution (IIDR) during the 2024 legislative session.

As Minnesota high schoolers head back to school this fall, don’t forget—they have new incentives to work in long-term care.

We often receive questions related to occupancy of secure dementia care units in licensed assisted living with dementia care facilities.

This October, the MN Dual-Training Pipeline program is hosting community conversations around the state for employers to come together and share their workforce challenges and successes, network with business leaders, and learn about the MN Dual-Training Pipeline program.

On Sept 24, the MN Geriatrics ECHO is hosting a session featuring our newest resource, CaringCareersStartHere.com, along with LeadingAge’s Director of Workforce, Anna Mowry.

The Home and Community Based services (HCBS) workforce incentive grant program being implemented by DHS is using a two-step process to determine how much funding each provider will receive.