Blog

Reminder and Helpful Tips to complete DHHS Minimum Wage Template by June 24th Deadline

In Public Law 2021, Chapter 398, Part AAAA, section 5 of the state budget enacted last summer, the Department of Health and Human Services is directed to increase rates to “enable providers to cover labor costs for essential support workers to equal at least 125% of the minimum wage… [including…] taxes and benefits […]”
 
DHHS has develop a template to collect employee-level data from long term care facilities in order to calculate the payment necessary to each facility to bring reimbursement for workers under 125% of minimum wage up to the 125% of minimum wage (presently $15.94/ hour).
 
The template is due no later than close of business on Friday, June 24, 2022. The Department will then use the resulting data to calculate the total amount for Part AAAA which will be incorporated in the FY 2023 rates. Any delay in receiving the template may result in delays with issuing rate letters. MHCA encourages members to submit their data by the deadline.
 
Instructions are included on the template and questions should be directed to Grace Williams at grace.williams@maine.gov
 
These tips are meant to provide some general guidance to members as they complete the template:
 
  1. Be sure to complete the template for each level of care (nursing facilities, residential care facilities). Note there are two separate tabs in the workbook already for NF and RCF. Copy and rename tabs for any additional levels of care (e.g. CBS, ABI, Other).
  2. Enter facility name and NPI on each tab of the workbook. 
  3. For the purposes of this data collection effort, “essential support workers” are defined as individuals who by virtue of employment generally provide to individuals direct contact assistance with activities of daily living or instrumental activities of daily living or has direct access to provide care and services to clients, patients, or residents regardless of setting.
  4. Please note under the column “position” there are five positions including: CNA, CMT, Ward Clerk, Activities, Attendants.
  5. We advise members to include ALL direct care workers in the five categories listed above including those who make more than $15.94 per hour. You do not have to include any other employees.
  6. Total hours worked (column 5) must be inclusive of all hours worked (including overtime and shift differentials). Paid time off should NOT be included in this column.
  7. Total compensation (column 6) must be inclusive of all pay, including base pay, overtime, shift differential, any bonuses, or other forms of compensation.
  8. Non-base wage compensation (column 7) must include bonuses and only the portion of overtime and shift differential wages that are in excess of base wages.
  9. Column 8 automatically calculates base wage compensation as the difference between columns 6 and 7.
  10. If a worker changed job classification during the year (i.e. from Ward Clerk to CNA), that workers' multiple job classifications and corresponding wages must be entered on different rows. If the worker's wages changed during the year, but they remained within a single job classification, all wages are to be included on a single row.
  11. If an employee worked on different units (NF, RCF, CBS) report only applicable unit's portion of wage on each tab. Consider adding a reconciliation for accruals if necessary.
  12. Please double check for accuracy to ensure that total compensation and hours worked for all levels of care reconcile to cost reports. See instructions on the template.
 
Staff contact: awesthoff@mehca.org