Assisted Living and Nursing Home Laws in Minnesota

Assisted Living and Nursing Homes can seem really similar. This fact sheet talks about some of the differences. Call the Senior LinkAge Line at 1-800-333-2433 for information about a care setting and what is best for you.

Assisted Living offers housing and services like daily meals, housekeeping, help with daily living, recreation activities or emergency call services.

Assisted Living can include:

• home and facility settings
• retirement communities
• memory care and hospice care
• independent apartments where services are available

The average cost for Assisted Living is about $5,500 per month but can be a lot less or a lot more.

• Not all Assisted Living places take payments from government programs. Make sure you check.
   
• 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 assessment.
   
• You might have to pay for home care on your own until your MA application is approved. This usually takes months.
   
• MA can pay for services you need, but you may need to pay for rent and food. Some people may be able to get help from a state program called Housing Support. To use Housing Support, your Assisted Living needs to keep rent and food below $1,170 a month.
   
• MA has an asset limit. 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 use your income and assets for your goals.

• Think about what services you want and where you want to live.
   
• If you can, ask people living there now what they think about living there.
   
• www.minnesotahelp.info is a great resource for information on assisted living places in Minnesota.

• If the Assisted Living Facility wants to end services they offer to you, you can still stay there if you bring in your own services at your own cost.
   
• If you have to move out, they have to help you move to another place. They can’t move you to a place that is not safe or a place that can’t give you the services you need.
   
• As long as your roommate agrees, you can put a camera in your room to monitor your safety. You have to give the Assisted Living Facility a signed form if you want a camera. 
  
  You can find forms at health.state.mn.us/facilities/regulation/emonitoring/. This web page has information and links to different forms for different situations.
   
• If you or anyone looking out for you 
   
  • makes a complaint, 
  • files an abuse report, or 
  • stands up for your rights
     
• You have the right to get information in a way that you understand best. This might be in another language, including braille or ASL.

Nursing Homes have extra laws and protections. Medicare might pay for part of your stay.  

Medical Assistance (MA) can also help pay for Nursing Homes.

You have regular tenant rights. You have many of the same rights listed above for Assisted Living. You also have more protections. 

There are only 6 reasons you can be discharged from a Nursing Home:

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

There is a Health Care Bill of Rights in Minnesota law. It protects you against being forced to take medications or treatments that you refuse. 

• Talk to your care facility. You might be able to clear it up with them and fix the problem.
   
• Call a MN Ombudsman for Long-Term Care
  1-800-657-3591
   
• Call the MN Office of Health Facility Complaints
  1-800-369-7994

Senior Linkage Line 1-800-333-2433