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You are receiving this email because you are the authorized agent of a licensed adult day center.
Recognizing the important role adult day centers play in the lives of people and providing support to families and caregivers, the Department of Human Services (DHS) continues to collaborate with the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) to maintain a reasonable balance between protecting public health and also ensuring that people have access to services and supports. Over the past several months, the two departments have worked together to gradually reopen adult day centers.
With Minnesota’s COVID-19 infection rates continuing to decrease, MDH and DHS have determined it is time to turn the dial again. The commissioner is further amending temporary modifications to certain licensing requirements to allow more people to receive services and to allow license holders to increase daily shift hours.
Effective February 17, 2021, the following licensing requirements are modified for adult day centers:
- License holders who resume service delivery in the licensed adult day center may provide such services in the facility to persons who live in the following congregate settings, only when the congregate setting has not had any COVID-19 exposure in the last 14 days:
- Housing with services establishments registered under Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 144D and operating assisted living as defined under Minnesota Statutes, section 144G.02, subdivision 1;
- Housing with services establishments registered under Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 144D and required to disclose special care status under Minnesota Statutes, section 325F.72;
- Licensed adult foster care under Minnesota Rules 9555.6105 – 955.6265; or
- Community residential settings under Minnesota Statutes, section 245D, subdivision 4a.
- Adult day centers are allowed to resume operations at 100% of their license capacity if the provider can maintain cohorts, social distancing, face covering, infection control and other elements of their COVID-19 Preparedness Plan and other temporary licensing requirements.
- The license holder may deliver services in one continuous shift not to exceed 8 hours per day, or two shifts not to exceed 4 hours for each shift. A participant can only attend one shift. If the shift is longer than 4 hours, the license holder is limited to one shift per day. The license holder must document the start and end time of each shift or 8-hour service period and the staff who worked those shifts, and must ensure the facility is cleaned and disinfected between shifts or at the end of each day if only an 8-hour service day is offered.
- The amount of service delivery time in the community and in the facility cannot exceed 8 hours for a person per day.
- Transportation time is not considered service delivery time and can be provided outside of the 8 hours.
- Providers must continue to notify DHS Licensing of changes to their hours of operation by submitting Notification About Resuming Facility Operation for Adult Day Centers (DHS-7313E).
- The license holder must create and maintain consistent cohorts of the same staff and persons receiving services. Cohorts must consist of 10 or fewer people receiving services; staff are not included in this number but should work with the same cohort. Cohorts must be maintained throughout the program day, including meal and snack times, and should also be maintained during the programming week whenever possible.
All other previously amended requirements remain unchanged. For more information about other licensing waivers that are still in effect, please visit the Licensing COVID-19 website.
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