April 23, 2026 - House Bill 1294 Stakeholder Forum - Extended Survey, Branch Updates & Meeting Date Updates

 

To: All Stakeholders  From: HFEMSD  You are invited to participate in the 1294 Stakeholder Forum. House Bill 1294 Stakeholder Forum is an opportunity to promote dialogue and transparency for issues of interest and concern to all licensed healthcare facilities. Pursuant to C.R.S 25-3-113, the Stakeholder Forum consists of representatives from various types of provider facilities licensed by the department along with consumers, consumer advocates, ombudsmen and other interested parties which meet at least four times each year for the Department to discuss and take into consideration the concerns and issues of interest to the forum members and other attendees regarding the development and implementation of rules and other matters that affect all licensed health care facilities. At this meeting, the department will present:  Branch updates Introduction to the extended survey criteria DATES: This meeting is scheduled for Thursday, April 23, 2026, from 2:00pm-3:00pm.  After this meeting, the Division will begin a series of ongoing 1294 meetings which will be held for 90 minutes beginning in May to continue discussions regarding the extended survey criteria. Thursday May 21, 2026 at 1pm-2:30pm Thursday June 18, 2026 at 1pm-2:30pm Thursday July 16, 2026 at 1pm-2:30pm To participate, we have a number of resource links below.   HB 1294 Stakeholder Forum Website (includes meeting information and invite/communication sign-up)  Agenda Item Request Form   REMINDER: Official meeting minutes are available from the department upon request. Attendees may use artificial intelligence (AI) note-taking tools; however, notes taken in this manner do not constitute the official record of the meeting. If you have any further questions or comments before the meeting, please contact Rachel Bader at rachel.bader@state.co.us

Memorandum: ALAC Meeting Update April 2026 Reschedule & Revised Quarterly Schedule

 

To: Assisted Living Advisory Committee Members  From: Marcie Schweitzer, ALR Community Services Section Manager The upcoming Assisted Living Advisory Committee (ALAC) quarterly meeting scheduled for April 23 is being rescheduled due to a conflict with the HB 12-1294 Stakeholder Forum occurring at the same time (2:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.). This adjustment ensures members and interested parties have the opportunity to participate in the stakeholder forum. Going forward, ALAC quarterly meetings will be held on the first Thursday of each quarter from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. The first meeting under this updated schedule will take place on May 7. The division's Assisted Living Advisory Committee webpage will be updated to reflect this revised schedule. Meeting information and the agenda for the upcoming meeting will be posted closer to the meeting date.

HOSPICE IDR Committee Meeting 4/21/26

 

To: HOSPICE providers From: HFEMSD The HOSPICE IDR Committee will not meet on April 21, 2026. The committee has not received requests for review.  For more information, please contact: Elaine Sabyan

HHA IDR Committee Meeting 04/21/26

 

To: HHA providers From: HFEMSD The HHA IDR Committee will not meet April 21, 2026. The Division has not received requests for committee review.  Elaine Sabyan

Understanding Dementia, A Course for Caregivers, 4-hour Basic Dementia Training

 

In 2022, the Colorado legislature passed SB 22-079, CRS section 25-1.5-118, requiring all direct-care staff who work in Assisted Living facilities to complete at least 4 hours of basic Dementia training and 2 hours of continuing education every 2 years. Facilities are responsible for making the required training available to direct-care staff at no cost.  The Department is pleased to announce a new 4-hour basic Dementia e-learning course, titled Understanding Dementia, A Course for Caregivers, that is now available to all direct-care staff throughout the state. The course, developed in partnership with an outside vendor, satisfies the requirements for initial dementia training and is available for free in both English and Spanish. To access the training, staff must log in or register for a CoTrain account.  CoTrain Website How to register:  To register for CoTrain, please create an account and then create your Train Profile.   How to create an account How to complete your CoTrain profile How to access the training: Once you’ve set up your CoTrain account, Please log in and search for Course ID 1134696 to access the dementia learning series in English. For the dementia learning series in Spanish it is Course ID 1134697. Next, click the green “Register” button at the top right of the screen. Didn’t receive a verification code after setting up your CoTrain Account? Check your spam folder. If the email is not in your spam folder, the email may be blocked by your agency, and you will need to speak with your IT department. The dementia course is listed as a 4-hour course, but once I register, the complete list of modules shows a total of seven hours. Which is correct? The course is approximately four hours long. However, because it is a learning series, each module had to be listed separately with a minimum time of one hour. Please note, this is a self-paced course, and the length to complete the course is dependent on the individual. The dementia course is a series of modules. You will need to follow these directions to access the next lesson after completing each module: After completing a lesson, select the "Exit Module" button in the upper right-hand corner of the screen. You will be taken back to the module homepage. Select the back arrow on the upper left side (under the title) to go back to the course menu. Select the next module to complete the course.  Select the green "Launch" button, and begin the next module. Continue to follow the directions to complete the series. If you have any questions regarding the training, please reach out to Dr. Steve Cox, Branch Chief, Home and Community Facilities at steve.cox@state.co.us. For assistance with setting up your CoTrain Account, please review the Tutorials or contact cdphe.co.train@state.co.us. If you continue to have issues, please reach out to Tonie Miller at tonie.miller@state.co.us.