Nursing home workers in Minnesota are facing another setback as the implementation of unprecedented wage increases has been delayed yet again. Leah Solo, the executive director of the Nursing Home Workforce Standards Board, announced during a recent board meeting that the Trump administration has reset its review period, starting the countdown anew.
According to the state law, nursing facility employees are required to earn a minimum of $19 an hour this year, escalating to $20.50 by the year 2027. Workers with nursing licenses are expected to earn more. Unfortunately, the approval for this wage floor from the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is still pending.
“I hate to bring bad news,” said Solo to the assembled board members, who expressed confusion and concern regarding the implications of the federal government's actions on the wage increases.
This marks the second significant delay concerning the wage floor, which was originally scheduled to take effect on January 1, due to bureaucratic hurdles. The wage floor requires $18 million in federal funding to be allocated to Minnesota's Medicaid program to facilitate the wage increases, with the state contributing an additional $18 million.
CMS initially has 90 days to review the wage proposal; however, they can extend this period if they require additional information. This past Wednesday, on the 89th day of the review, CMS requested more details from Minnesota officials, effectively restarting the review clock.
The state’s Department of Human Services is the entity responsible for seeking this federal approval, not the workforce board directly. As a result, CMS's correspondence was directed to the Department of Human Services, which then informed Solo of the request.
As of now, the specific information requested by CMS from Minnesota remains unclear. Department officials have stated they are working on a response to CMS's queries.
The wage statute had already faced previous delays due to Human Services not filing in a timely manner; they submitted the necessary paperwork in January, triggering the current review. The push for a dedicated wage floor—often viewed as a remnant of the New Deal—has been supported by labor unions advocating for better pay for nursing home workers in several blue states.
Minnesota claims the distinction of being the first state to focus specifically on the nursing home sector's wage issues. The push for change comes amidst a lawsuit from nursing homes seeking the board's dissolution and alleging that the wage increases are detrimental to their operations.
A federal court hearing is upcoming to consider the industry's request for an injunction, and discussions regarding the lawsuit were a central topic during a recent board meeting.
