Panel forwards MDVA bill to allow emergency closures of veterans homes to meet federal rules
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Summary
The committee re‑referred House File 35 22, an agency bill to allow the Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs to implement temporary closures of veterans homes to satisfy Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services requirements; MDVA counsel said the change is strictly to ensure compliance and the department "has no intention of closing any of its facilities."
Representative Duran introduced House File 35 22, a Department of Veterans Affairs agency bill to add a statutory subsection allowing additional procedures in the unlikely event a veterans home must be closed following an involuntary termination notice from federal regulators.
John Kelly, director of government affairs for the Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs, said the statutory change grew out of a CMS survey last August and is intended to reconcile Minnesota statutes with federal requirements. "I want to be crystal clear that the Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs has no intention of closing any of its facilities across the state," Kelly said.
Kelly explained that under current Minnesota law the commissioner may not close a veterans home without the legislature passing a law authorizing it; that constraint can force the department to seek a special session or fast-track legislation after a CMS survey. The bill would allow MDVA to implement a closure plan in specific circumstances provided residents are moved to suitable locations and other safeguards are followed.
Co-chair Zhang and others asked about the statute’s history; Kelly said the legislature added the closure restriction around 2014–2015 during previous debates about a domiciliary facility. Representative Duran renewed his motion and the committee voted by voice to re-refer HF 35 22 to the general register.
