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LeadingAge recently mailed complimentary copies of the 2021 compensation reports for nursing facilities and senior housing providers to members who participated in those surveys.

CMS announced on Dec. 28 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.

Providers licensed by the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), including home care, assisted living facilities, and nursing homes, will not transition back to fingerprint-based background studies until Feb. 2, 2022. Until the transition occurs, these providers will continue to submit emergency studies, as we have been doing throughout the pandemic.

As we reported about a month ago, the Minnesota Department of Health (DHS) will not be posting care center rate notices before the start of the new rate year on Jan. 1. Rate notices not being available for the beginning of the rate year makes the billing of private pay residents much more complicated than usual. It also impacts the notice requirements.

The Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) has announced that it is withdrawing the non-record keeping portions of the COVID-19 Healthcare Emergency Temporary Standard ETS (the “Healthcare ETS”) the agency issued in June 2021. This standard establishes various protections for workers in settings where healthcare and health support services are provided and is separate from the vaccination or testing requirement issued by OSHA in early November.

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.

The Institute & Expo in February includes a full Quality & Patient Safety Conference-within-a-Conference within the conference, plus a full day Foundations of Quality Improvement Boot Camp as a pre-conference option.

The LeadingAge Minnesota Foundation is excited to announce our sixth annual silent auction, which returns to the 2022 Institute this year. Thanks to the generosity of the LeadingAge Minnesota community, our previous auctions have raised over $40,000 to support the critical work of the Foundation. With your help, we can make this year's auction even more successful!

We hope you can join us for our virtual district meetings next month. We have some phenomenal content that we know will be of relevance and value to all our members!  You can see the District Meeting Agenda Here.

We are looking forward to the 2022 Institute and delivering the in-person education and networking experience that we have not offered since the onset of COVID-19. We want everyone interested in attending Institute to do so safely. To that end, we developed health and safety protocols in accordance with CDC guidelines and association industry best practices for large events. As circumstances warrant, we may modify our requirements.

Senate Majority Leader Schumer has committed to a procedural vote on the Senate Build Back Better Act, which is still being drafted. On Dec. 20, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) acknowledged the deep discontent and frustration in a Dear Colleague letter by the decision to delay floor consideration of the Build Back Better Act because Senator Manchin could not agree with President Biden.

The Minnesota Board of Executives for Long Term Services and Supports (BELTSS) has announced that there will be an open position appointment to meet Minn. Statutes 144A.19 for “one licensed nursing home administrator or health services executive member actively engaged in the management or operation of nonprofit nursing homes or assisted living facilities.”

Minnesota Health Care Programs (MHCP) has updated many of the home and community-based provider (HCBS) enrollment forms.

Care centers have access to an engagement, retention, and leadership building platform for free through a grant for Align’s Employee Engagement Solution. The final grant window closes on Jan. 30. Previous messages indicated that subsequent grant cycles would open over the next two years; however, this will be the last opportunity.

The latest Request for Proposal for the Home and Community Based (HCBS) Scholarship Grant is currently open, with applications due on Jan. 31. This grant is offered through the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), Office of Rural Health and Primary Care. You can find the HCBS Scholarship Grant details, including the RFP, on the MDH website.

With winter upon us, it's an excellent time to consider the risks that heating units can potentially create for residents in nursing homes and assisted living settings. 

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued an Emergency Use Authorization for the Pfizer-developed drug Paxlovid, the First Oral Antiviral Treatment of COVID-19.

Gov. Tim Walz announced a new initiative to recruit, train, and deploy at least 1,000 new certified nursing assistants for Minnesota long-term care facilities experiencing staffing shortages by the end of January. LeadingAge Minnesota and our Long-Term Care Imperative played a critical role in advocating for this initiative.

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.

The 2022 Institute & Expo features the return of the Leadership Intensive on Wednesday, Feb. 9 – a half-day session for executives and leaders to help strengthen their organizations and build the momentum necessary to propel past the pandemic and beyond.

LeadingAge Minnesota has announced its 2022 District Meeting schedule.

In January, we are kicking things off with a virtual connection with plans of being in person for the other two meetings.  We plan to bring you a slate of relevant topics, including our legislative overview, resiliency resources, and a workforce-related CEU.

Have you had the opportunity to connect with our technical experts? They stand ready to assist you on the phone, through email, at our offices or in your community. They can help guide you through questions about regulations, operations, payment, quality and best practices.

The Minnesota Health Care Loan Forgiveness program cycle is accepting applications through Jan. 17, 2022. The Loan Forgiveness program is available for various health care professionals serving in high-need areas, including nurses in nursing homes, assisted living, and home care settings. You can find general program information for long-term care on the MDH website.

"Tis the season to be jolly" – but this can be easier said than done.  While the holidays bring many joys, they can also add extra stress.

Experts point to two exercises that are highlighted in Self Care for Safe Care to help us successfully navigate the holidays:

This week the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) began distributing the $17 billion in Provider Relief Fund (PRF) Phase 4 funding to a broad range of health care providers, including care centers, assisted living, and adult day providers who experienced revenue loss and increased expenses associated with the pandemic.

The Build Back Better Act (BBB) currently being debated in the Senate requires nursing homes to have a registered nurse on staff 24 hours a day.

The latest Request for Proposal for the Home and Community Based (HCBS) Scholarship Grant will be released on Dec. 20. Applications are due on Jan. 31, 2022. This grant is offered through the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), Office of Rural Health and Primary Care. You can find the HCBS Scholarship Grant details on the MDH website.

With assisted living licensees several months into the new licensing structure, several directors have transitioned from one position to another. When a director leaves an assisted living setting or the setting gets a new director, they must notify the Board of Executives for Long-term Services and Supports (BELTSS).

$50 million in American Rescue Plan funding will be sent to care centers soon to provide retention and recruitment bonuses for employees. Although the initial announcement indicated the money would arrive in December, the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) plans to send the funding out on the Jan. 4 remittance advice due to red tape within the agency. Each care center will receive $10.97 times their number of Medicaid resident days on the 2020 cost report.