Serving Minnesota’s disability system means understanding the DHS → Medical Assistance → waiver structure, getting licensed under 245A and 245D, clearing DHS background studies, training your direct support professionals to the 245D.09 topic list, and adopting positive supports — all in service of each individual’s support plan. Here is the whole path, in order.
Minnesota’s disability system runs through the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS), which licenses community providers and administers the waivers. Medical Assistance (MA) — Minnesota’s Medicaid program — funds the disability waivers (DD, CADI, BI, CAC), and county and tribal lead agencies perform assessment, case management, and service authorization. In the 2024–2025 reorganization, some functions moved to new departments, but 245D licensing, the waivers, and background studies all stayed with DHS. (“MA” here is Minnesota’s Medicaid program, not the state of Massachusetts.)
Community disability services are licensed under Minnesota Statutes Chapter 245D (Home and Community-Based Services Standards), and a 245D license holder is also subject to the human-services licensing chapter 245A. Decide which services you will provide — basic support (respite, homemaker, night supervision, individualized home supports without training) versus intensive support (residential/CRS, family residential, day services, employment services, positive-support interventions) — and build to the 245D standards for rights, health and safety, staffing, and service planning.
Before staff have direct contact with individuals, run DHS background studies under Minnesota Statutes Chapter 245C through NETStudy 2.0 — the fingerprint-and-photo study system. License applicants, controlling individuals, and employees or volunteers with direct contact must be studied. A disqualification can be addressed through the set-aside and reconsideration process, and studies are rechecked over time.
Minnesota anchors DSP training to Minn. Stat. 245D.09: orientation within 60 calendar days of hire covering incident reporting, data privacy, service recipient rights, person-centered planning, manual restraint and prohibited procedures, basic first aid, and sexual-violence prevention — with maltreatment-reporting training within 72 hours of first direct contact. Annual training is topic- and competency-based (no fixed hour count). See Minnesota DSP training requirements for the details.
Adopt the Positive Supports Rule (Minn. Rules chapter 9544) and Minn. Stat. 245D.06: positive strategies first, and a hard prohibition on seclusion; chemical, mechanical, and prone restraint; and aversive or deprivation procedures. Emergency use of manual restraint is allowed only under Minn. Stat. 245D.061 and must be reported through the statutory chain on the Behavior Intervention Reporting Form (DHS-5148), with a positive support transition plan to phase out restrictive interventions.
Every employee is a mandated reporter under the Vulnerable Adults Act — suspected maltreatment goes immediately to MAARC at 1-844-880-1574. Daily documentation must implement each person’s support plan / CSSP Addendum under 245D.07 and comply with the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act and HIPAA. Keeping all of it audit-ready for a DHS licensing review is exactly what DSPlife™ TrainingHub handles — a ready-to-assign Minnesota course library, renewal tracking, and audit-ready records.
A 245D license is Minnesota’s license for community Home and Community-Based Services under Minnesota Statutes Chapter 245D, issued by the Department of Human Services. It covers basic and intensive support services — including residential (Community Residential Settings and family residential), day services, and employment services. A 245D license holder is also governed by the human-services licensing chapter 245A.
No. Minnesota split DHS into three departments — DHS, the Department of Direct Care and Treatment (state-operated facilities), and the Department of Children, Youth, and Families (child care and child foster licensing plus child protection). 245D licensing, the disability waivers, background studies, and adult foster care / Community Residential Settings all remained with DHS. Only child foster care moved.
Under Minnesota Statutes Chapter 245C, staff with direct contact — plus license applicants and controlling individuals — must complete a DHS background study through NETStudy 2.0, which is fingerprint- and photo-based. Disqualifications can be addressed through set-aside and reconsideration, and studies are rechecked over time.
Minnesota’s 245D annual training is topic- and competency-based, not a fixed number of hours. The statute (245D.09) requires annual training on the specified orientation topics, but unlike some states it does not set a minimum annual hour count. Orientation itself must be completed within 60 calendar days of hire, with maltreatment-reporting training within 72 hours of first direct contact.
Every employee is a mandated reporter under the Vulnerable Adults Act (Minn. Stat. 626.557). When a staff member knows or has reason to believe a vulnerable adult is being or has been maltreated, they report immediately to the Minnesota Adult Abuse Reporting Center (MAARC) at 1-844-880-1574, the statewide common entry point. The DHS Office of Inspector General investigates maltreatment in DHS-licensed 245D programs.
This guide is general information, not legal or regulatory advice. DSPlife™ TrainingHub is not affiliated with the Minnesota Department of Human Services. Always confirm current requirements at mn.gov/dhs and revisor.mn.gov.
TrainingHub ships with a Minnesota 245D course library your staff can complete on their own schedule — the DHS/245D system and the support plan, service recipient rights, the Vulnerable Adults Act and MAARC reporting, positive supports and the EUMR/BIRF process, medication under 245D.05, and a first-60-days onboarding path — with renewal tracking and alerts before anything lapses. Free to start — no credit card required.
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