Assisted Living and Nursing Home Laws in Minnesota

Assisted Living is a type of rental housing that includes services like daily meals, housekeeping, help with daily living, recreation activities and emergency call services.

There are different names for Assisted Living, like Housing with Services and Customized Living. The different types of Assisted Living may have slightly different rules but they will be lumped together as “Assisted Living” in this factsheet.

Assisted Living includes:

• in-home residential and Assisted Living situations
• retirement communities
• Alzheimer’s and hospice care
• a whole range of independent living situations where services are available

The average cost for Assisted Living is $3,350 per month but can be a lot less or a lot more. That cost includes the bill for both rent and services.

• If you want government help to pay for your Assisted Living you have to do a Medical Assistance (MA) long-term care application AND a MN Choices questionnaire (formerly called a Long-Term Care Consultation (LTCC).)

• You might have to pay for home care on your own until your MA application is approved. This could take weeks or even months.

• MA might pay for the services you need but you may be responsible for rent or room and board. Some people may be able to get help from Housing Support (formerly called Group Residential Housing). Up to $891 a month.

• You may need to spend down money to reach MA eligibility. If you have a large amount of assets you may want to talk to a lawyer who works on MA planning. A lawyer can talk to you about the best way to preserve your income and assets. This is extra important if you move to a nursing home.

• Not all Assisted Living places take payments from public assistance agencies for services or housing and food. Make sure you check.

• There may be charges for additional services that are not covered.

• Think about what services you want and where you want to live

• www.minnesotahelp.info is a great resource for information on assisted living places in Minnesota.

• Click on “Seniors”
• Click on “Housing” (under more topics)
• Click on “Supportive housing”
• Pick a topic

• If you can, ask people living there now what they think

Nursing Homes are different than Assisted Living places. They have extra laws and protections. Medicare might pay for part of your stay. Medicare does not pay for Assisted Living services.

Another difference is that Medical Assistance rules change for Nursing Homes. Call the Senior Linkage Line at 1-800-333-2433 for more information about nursing homes.

Regular tenant rights apply AND you have even more protections.

There are only 6 reasons you can be discharged from the facility:

1. Your health improves
2. The facility closes
3. You owe rent
4. You are unsafe
5. Others are unsafe if you are there
6. The facility can't meet your needs

The Health Care Bill of Rights protects you against being forced to take medications or treatments that you refuse. You can read the Health Care Bill of Rights in Minnesota Statute 144.651.

• Talk to your assisted living/nursing home facility. You might be able to clear it up with them and fix the problem.

• Call a MN Ombudsman for Long-Term Care 651-431-2555

• Call the MN Office of Health Facility Complaints 651-201-4201

• Call your local Legal Aid office 612-334-5970 for Hennepin and Anoka County

Senior Linkage Line 1-800-333-2433

This fact sheet is funded in part by: the Metropolitan Area Agency on Aging and the Older Americans Act.