AASD and DSD eList announcement

Date: Dec. 23, 2025, and Jan. 20, 2026
To: People receiving any type of direct care service and other interested parties
From: DHS Aging and Adult Services and Disability Services divisions
Purpose: To announce DHS is conducting a survey to learn how the direct care staffing shortage impacts people receiving supports
Survey opens: Dec. 23, 2025
Survey deadline: Feb. 1, 2026
Contact: PositiveSupports@state.mn.us

Minnesota direct care staffing shortage impact annual survey

DHS is conducting an optional, anonymous survey to collect feedback on how the direct care staffing shortage impacts people who receive supports. We plan to conduct the survey each year.

Survey details

Use the following information to complete the survey:

· How to participate: To complete the survey, refer to:
English: Minnesota direct care staffing shortage impact annual survey.
Hmong: Kev cuam tshuam ntawm qhov chaw ua hauj lwm saib xyuas neeg ncaj qha hauv Minnesota qhov kev tshawb fawb.
Somali: Sahanka Minnesota ee saameynta yaraanshaha shaqaalaha daryeelka tooska ah.

· Survey opens: Dec. 23, 2025

· Survey deadline: Feb. 1, 2026

· Participants: People age 18 and older who were eligible to receive a government-funded direct care service in Minnesota between Jan. 1, 2025, and Dec. 31, 2025.
Note: If a person younger than age 18 wants to take the survey, they must ask a person age 18 or older to complete the survey on their behalf.

· Instructions: Each person should complete the survey once. If a person can’t fill out the survey, they can get help from someone else. Before helping someone complete the survey, check with the person and their care team to make sure the person has not already completed the survey. All questions after the first question are optional. Your participation will not impact any services you receive.

Survey results

DHS plans to:

· Use the survey information to learn how people’s experiences change each year.

· Share the survey information with state leaders to help them make decisions.

· Post the survey results under the data tab on DHS – The direct care workforce shortage in Minnesota by April 2026.

Background information about direct care

Direct care is paid help from a staff person, including paid family caregivers, with things like:

· Eating or meal preparation.

· Bathing.

· Transportation.

· Managing bills or other paperwork.

· Housework.

· Job support.

· Learning new skills.

· Managing behavioral or cognitive challenges.

· Taking medications.

Background information about direct care services

People can receive help from paid direct care staff through waiver, state plan and other services in many settings, including a person’s own home, adult foster care settings, nursing homes or assisted living facilities.

Direct care services include approximately 100 different service types in Minnesota, such as:

· Personal care assistance (PCA) services.

· Home health aide (HHA) services.

· Adult day services.

· Community residential services.

· Employment support services.

· Individualized home support services.

· Chore or homemaker services.

· Respite services.

· Adult foster care services.

· Individual community living support services.

· Early Intensive Developmental and Behavioral Intervention (EIDBI) services.

· Hospice services.

· Consumer directed community supports services.

· Children’s residential facility services.

· Intensive residential treatment services.

· Customized living services.

More information

For more information, refer to:

· DHS – The direct care workforce shortage in Minnesota.

· DHS – Workforce shortage resources for people who use services.

Previous eList announcements

AASD LEAD AGENCY ARCHIVE | DSD LEAD AGENCY ARCHIVE | DSD STAKEHOLDER ARCHIVE