The article below is a top story from this week's ACTION newsletter—Care Providers of Minnesota's weekly newsletter for members. The newsletter focuses on current legislative issues, regulations, long-term care trends, and other Association news. Each Thursday evening, it is delivered to your inbox. To sign up for ACTION, contact Lisa Foss Olson (952-851-2483). To learn more about membership, visit our Become a Member page.
Attention! HHS nondiscrimination final rule poster for sale
By Jane Danner | October 25, 2024 | All members
The US Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a final rule under Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) advancing protections against discrimination in healthcare. The final rule strengthens protections against discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, age, and disability. The rule reduces language access barriers, expands physical and digital accessibility, tackles bias in health technology, and much more. Under Section 1557 of the ACA, healthcare providers, including nursing facilities
(and assisted living facilities providing Medicaid waiver services) have new obligations to make sure that people in all communities have a right to access healthcare, free from discrimination.
The rule applies to any health program or activity receiving federal funds from HHS. This means that nursing facilities, ID/DD providers, and Medicare Advantage plans are subject to this final rule. Assisted living communities could also be subject to the rule if they receive federal financial assistance (e.g., through a Medicaid waiver program). The final rule may be viewed or downloaded at:
https://www.hhs.gov/civil-rights/for-individuals/section-1557/index.html.
New resource for sale
Healthcare providers are required to post a notice of nondiscrimination by
November 2, 2024. The poster must include the facility name, address, and contact information for the facility’s civil rights coordinator.
Care Providers of Minnesota has created Notice of Nondiscrimination Poster available for purchase. Providers who purchase the poster will receive a link with their receipt requesting the required information for the poster. The information will be merged with the poster and mailed.
The rule contains many other requirements. For more information, please visit the “
Regulatory Resources: Nondiscrimination Final Rule” page on the Care Providers of Minnesota website for resources including the following:
- Final rule advance protections against discrimination for healthcare providers (pdf)
- Nondiscrimination in health programs & activities (on-demand webinar)
- Final rule task list (pdf)
- Auxiliary aid examples (pdf)
- Resources for nondiscrimination in healthcare (pdf)
- Top 15 non-English languages in Minnesota (pdf)
- HHS OCR training materials (pdf)
- Sample policies
You may contact Jane Danner at the Association office with any questions.
Jane Danner | Director of Regulatory Services | jdanner@careproviders.org | 952-851-2489