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2021-2022 Regular Session

Omnibus health and human services policy law modifies programs, projects and regulations

A new law makes changes to policies governing the Health and Human Services departments.

The wide-ranging law sponsored by Rep. Jennifer Schultz (DFL-Duluth) and Sen. Jim Abeler (R-Anoka) makes changes affecting child welfare and protection, health-related licensing boards, behavioral health policies, continuing care for older adults, services for people with disabilities, programs to protect children and vulnerable adults, preventing homelessness, economic assistance, and licensing and operations policies at the Department of Human Services.

It is effective July 1, 2022 unless otherwise noted.

A $522,000 appropriation in fiscal year 2023 from the State Government Special Revenue Fund to the Department of Human Services is to implement provisions to eliminate duplicative background studies for personal care assistants and other health aides not licensed through professional boards. (Art. 1, Sec. 70)

Beginning Sept. 1, 2022, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program gross income limit will be raised from 165% of the federal poverty guidelines to 200% of the federal poverty guidelines (Art. 9, Sec. 1).

Effective June 3, 2022, a nine-member Opioids, Substance Use, and Addiction subcabinet in the executive branch is created by the law. The Governor's Advisory Council on Opioids, Substance Use, and Addiction is also established to advise the subcabinet. It will be comprised of up to 18 members.

Among its duties, the subcabinet is to “identify challenges that exist within state government that create silos around addiction, treatment, prevention, and recovery; that limit access to treatment options or addiction-related services for all Minnesotans; and that prevent successful treatment outcomes.” The group is to also look at opportunities to “support accessible and effective substance use disorder treatment options or addiction-related services” and strategies that could be used to address prevention efforts. (Art. 6, Sec. 1)

Other provisions in the law include:

• establishing a loan forgiveness program for individual home and community-based services workers for education in nursing and other health care fields (Art. 1, Sec. 5);

• effective June 3, 2022, modifying practice supervision requirements for certain mental health professionals to allow hours to be completed via remote audio and video (Art. 3, Secs. 1-6);

• permitting licensed pharmacists to inject prescribed medication and place drug monitoring devices (Art. 3, Sec. 20);

• effective June 3, 2022 until Jan. 1, 2024, ambulance service personnel can use an emergency medication or medical supply for up to six months after the product’s expiration date when the ambulance service experiences a shortage (Art. 3, Sec. 23);

• effective June 3, 2022 permitting nurses whose licenses have lapsed as of Jan. 1, 2019, to apply for reregistration to work at a nursing home or assisted living facility (Art. 3, Sec. 24);

• effective Aug. 1, 2022, expanding and clarifying the scope of mental health data that can be shared with law enforcement agencies responding to a person undergoing a mental health crisis (Art. 6, Secs. 2-3);

• effective Aug. 1, 2022, a psychiatric residential treatment facility provider must provide at least one staff person for every six residents present within a living unit during normal sleeping hours; (Art. 6, Sec. 8)

• clarifying that federally recognized tribal nations are eligible to receive emergency services grants from the Department of Human Services (Art. 9, Sec. 2);

• effective Aug. 1, 2022, extending the amount of time a homeless person or family can stay in transitional housing from 24 to 36 months (Art. 11, Sec. 1);

• beginning June 3, 2022, permitting trained staff at chemical dependency licensed treatment facilities to inject patients with naloxone and epinephrine (Art. 12, Sec. 11);

• clarifying regulations on products containing cannabinoids (Art. 13, Secs. 4-10); and

• making it unlawful, effective Aug. 1, 2022, to limit a patient’s access to an organ transplant based on race and ethnicity (Art. 13, Sec. 11).

HF4065*/SF3816/CH98


New Laws 2023

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HF4065* / SF3816 / CH98
House Chief Author: Schultz
Senate Chief Author: Abeler
Effective Dates: See chapter summary in the file link above.
* The legislative bill marked with an asterisk denotes the file submitted to the governor.