The Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) is implementing a temporary licensing moratorium for Adult Day Care. This moratorium will go into effect on February 1, 2026, with an anticipated duration of 24 months, ending January 31, 2028. 

Under this moratorium, DHS will:  

• Stop accepting new applications for adult day care licenses, 

• Cancel all submitted applications currently in the queue.  

DHS is taking this action because while the number of license applications has not substantially increased, there has been a 43% increase in the licensed capacity of adult day service providers. Over the same period, there was a 7% increase in the yearly average of Medicaid adult day participants. This means the state has capacity to serve people in adult day cares that substantially exceeds current or expected need over the next two years.   

DHS recognizes that implementing a temporary moratorium across adult day care will have an impact on virtually all stakeholders involved in adult day services. During the 24-month moratorium, DHS will focus our efforts on investigating allegations of fraud in adult day services programs, continuing to review licensed adult day care providers on a two-year cycle to monitor regulatory compliance with an eye on program integrity concerns, and consider methods that may be implemented after the moratorium to ensure a flow of new license applicants that better reflect and meet the identified service needs of adult day services participants statewide. 

Exceptions 

To ensure people across Minnesota can access the services they need, DHS will implement an exception process based on requests submitted by lead agencies (counties and managed care organizations) or Tribal Nations. This will enable lead agencies and Tribal Nations, either individually or in groups to meet regional needs, to request a new licensed adult day care. An exception request from a lead agency or Tribal Nation will not guarantee a new license is issued; any provider identified in an exception request must still submit all required information and demonstrate compliance with all regulations/requirements before being issued an adult day care license. Before the moratorium begins, DHS will finalize and publicly share the processes and criteria for granting exceptions requested by lead agencies or Tribal Nations.  

If you have any questions regarding this moratorium, please contact your adult day care licensor or call the DHS Licensing help desk at 651-431-6624.