DHS/Nursing Home Worker Supp. Wage Pay Program

The Minnesota Department of Human Services, Grants, Equity, Access, and Research (GEAR) Division is requesting proposals to administer the Nursing Home Worker Supplemental Wage Payment Program, with proposals due October 6, 2026 at 4:00 p.m. Central Time through the SWIFT Supplier Portal. Certified veteran-owned small businesses receive a 12% preference on total points under Minnesota Statute 16C.16, subd. 6a.

The program provides one-time supplemental wage payments to eligible nursing home workers whose earnings fell below applicable wage standards during January 1 through June 30, 2026. The contractor will manage application development and processing, employer data collection and validation, eligibility verification, multilingual customer assistance, payment administration, reporting, and audit support. The contractor must maintain sufficient staffing, develop secure systems for data collection and application processing, provide quality assurance procedures, and demonstrate commitment to advancing equitable access and identifying barriers faced by eligible workers with geographic, linguistic, cultural, or technological limitations. The contractor retains sole responsibility for program policy decisions and eligibility determinations and must comply with all state and federal legal and privacy requirements.

The Minnesota Legislature has allocated $9.5 million in total funding for supplemental wage payments to eligible workers. The anticipated contract start is December 1, 2026, with an anticipated end date of January 1, 2028; the state may extend the contract up to a total of five years. Evaluation is on a "best value" basis: Phase I assesses responsiveness and pass/fail requirements; Phase II weights work plan (25 points), qualifications and experience (20 points), references (5 points), accessibility/ADA compliance (5 points), advancing equity (15 points), and cost proposal (30 points). A Responder's Conference is scheduled for September 22, 2026 at 11:00 a.m. Central Time via Microsoft Teams (recommended but not mandatory). Questions are due September 24, 2026 at 4:00 p.m. Central Time. Award is anticipated November 6, 2026.