Citing an “unprecedented” rise in the number of new license applications from home- and community-based services providers, the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS) has announced a two-year pause to new licenses.
The pause will also prevent currently licensed providers from adding new service lines and will cancel all pending applications and requests for new service lines. The change is designed to increase oversight of home- and community-based providers in the state.
“The unprecedented increase in provider applications over the past five years far outpaces the increase in people receiving services,” temporary Human Services Commissioner Shireen Gandhi said in a statement. “This has stretched our resources and created frustrating backlogs for people applying for licenses. Pausing will allow us to provide necessary oversight of existing providers and better protect the health and safety of people receiving services.”
The pause is set to go into effect on Jan. 1, 2026, and is anticipated to end after Dec. 31, 2027. Once the pause goes into effect, licensing efforts will center around visiting existing providers to review compliance with state and federal regulations, according to the DHS.
According to Minnesota DHS, the decision aligns with Governor Tim Walz’s executive order that, in part, instructed the agency to identify programs with a high risk of fraud, waste and abuse.
The Trump administration has recently called attention to other types of fraud in Minnesota, with President Donald Trump calling the state a “hub of fraudulent money laundering activity.”
Despite the significant Medicaid cuts signed into law in 2025, major players in the home- and community-based services space remain bullish on the service line. Aveanna CEO Jeff Shaner recently told HHCN that there has never been a better time to be a provider of these services.
