Sol_75N91024R00007_Amd_0001.pdf

(x)

75N91024R00007 x x

1 copies of the amendment; (b) By acknowledging receipt of this amendment on each copy of the offer submitted ; or (c) By separate letter or electronic communication which includes a reference to the solicitation and amendment numbers. FAILURE OF YOUR ACKNOWLEDGEMENT TO BE

RECEIVED AT THE PLACE DESIGNATED FOR THE RECEIPT OF OFFERS PRIOR TO THE HOUR AND DATE SPECIFIED MAY RESULT IN REJECTION OF YOUR

OFFER. If by virtue of this amendment you desire to change an offer already submitted , such change may be made by letter or electronic communication, provided each letter or electronic communication makes reference to the solicitation and this amendment, and is received prior to the opening hour and date specified.

x

NCI-EXEC

Bethesda, MD 20892-7511 National Cancer Institute National Institutes of Health

06/03/20240001

13. THIS ITEM ONLY APPLIES TO MODIFICATION OF CONTRACTS/ORDERS. IT MODIFIES THE CONTRACT/ORDER NO. AS DESCRIBED IN ITEM 14.

12. ACCOUNTING AND APPROPRIATION DATA (If required) is not extended.is extended, Items 8 and 15, and returning

Offers must acknowledge receipt of this amendment prior to the hour and date specified in the solicitation or as amended , by one of the following methods: (a) By completing

The above numbered solicitation is amended as set forth in Item 14. The hour and date specified for receipt of Offers

11. THIS ITEM ONLY APPLIES TO AMENDMENTS OF SOLICITATIONS

FACILITY CODE CODE

10B. DATED (SEE ITEM 13)

10A. MODIFICATION OF CONTRACT/ORDER NO.

9B. DATED (SEE ITEM 11)

9A. AMENDMENT OF SOLICITATION NO.

CODE

8. NAME AND ADDRESS OF CONTRACTOR (No., street, county, State and ZIP Code)

7. ADMINISTERED BY (If other than Item 6)CODE 6. ISSUED BY

PAGE OF PAGES

4. REQUISITION/PURCHASE REQ. NO.3. EFFECTIVE DATE2. AMENDMENT/MODIFICATION NO. 5. PROJECT NO. (If applicable)

1. CONTRACT ID CODE

AMENDMENT OF SOLICITATION/MODIFICATION OF CONTRACT

05/22/2024

CHECK ONE A. THIS CHANGE ORDER IS ISSUED PURSUANT TO: (Specify authority) THE CHANGES SET FORTH IN ITEM 14 ARE MADE IN THE CONTRACT

B. THE ABOVE NUMBERED CONTRACT/ORDER IS MODIFIED TO REFLECT THE ADMINISTRATIVE CHANGES (such as changes in paying office, C. THIS SUPPLEMENTAL AGREEMENT IS ENTERED INTO PURSUANT TO AUTHORITY OF:

D. OTHER (Specify type of modification and authority) appropriation data, etc.) SET FORTH IN ITEM 14, PURSUANT TO THE AUTHORITY OF FAR 43.103(b).

E. IMPORTANT: Contractor is not is required to sign this document and return __________________ copies to the issuing office.

ORDER NO. IN ITEM 10A.

14. DESCRIPTION OF AMENDMENT/MODIFICATION (Organized by UCF section headings, including solicitation/contract subject matter where feasible.)

The purpose of this amendment is to provide responses to questions received.

16A. NAME AND TITLE OF CONTRACTING OFFICER (Type or print)15A. NAME AND TITLE OF SIGNER (Type or print)

15C. DATE SIGNED 16B. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 15B. CONTRACTOR/OFFEROR 16C. DATE SIGNED

(Signature of person authorized to sign) (Signature of Contracting Officer)

KARINA A. PETERSON

STANDARD FORM 30 (REV. 11/2016)

Prescribed by GSA FAR (48 CFR) 53.243

Previous edition unusable

Except as provided herein, all terms and conditions of the document referenced in Item 9 A or 10A, as heretofore changed, remains unchanged and in full force and effect .

75N91024R00007 Amendment 1 Page 2 of 9

National Cancer Institute’s Cancer Information Service 75N91024R00007 Amendment 1

I. Questions and Answers:

Q1. In Section A, Box 8, can you clarify what “local” time means for when the full proposal is due by?

Would it be 2 PM EST or 2 PM PST?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The full proposal is due by 2:00 PM Eastern Time on June 21, 2024.

Q2. In the past, we had an understanding that the Proposal Intent Response Form was due prior to submission of the full proposal. Can you confirm that the due date for Attachment 2 is truly June 21, 2024?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The due date of Attachment 2 – Proposal Intent Response Form remains unchanged - June 21, 2024.

Q3. Page 81 of the Solicitation d. Level of Effort - How are they calculating labor hours?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The level of effort was calculated by using the assumption that everything listed in the SOW would be completed using the specified number of hours.

Q4. Per Attachment 5 - Technical Proposal Instructions: Section1: General Instructions 1. Proposal Title Page, 2. Proposal Summary and Data Record

• Is the title page included in the total page count?

• Is the proposal summary and date record included in the total page count?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: Both the title page and proposal summary and date record are not included in the total page count.

Q5. Attachment 5 - Technical Proposal Instructions, Section 2 Mandatory criteria: The offeror shall document that the Contractor’s business and its employees performing this project are with the defined service areas of the United States-Does the documentation of this mandatory criteria count in the page total?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: This does not count towards the page total.

Q6. Should the Proposal Summary and Data Record be the 2nd page of our proposal?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: This is up to the vendor.

Q7. Does the scenario presented in Attachment 5, Section 3A7, need to be included under this section or can it be an attachment to the proposal?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The response to the scenario should be included in the Understanding the Work/Technical Approach and not exceed four pages in length.

Amendment 1 Page 3 of 9

Q8. Attachment 5-Technical Proposal Instructions Formatting and Layout: Proposals shall not include links to internet web site addresses (URL) or otherwise direct readers/reviewers to alternate sources of information-Is it ok to include links as citations such as when citing a publication from an online journal article?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: No links to citations should be included. The vendor can discuss any publications in the proposal.

Q9. The estimated labor hours for the agents appear to be significantly higher than what would typically be necessary to manage the anticipated call volumes. Could you please clarify if there are any additional activities or administrative tasks that these agents are expected to perform beyond handling calls?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: Offerors are advised to consider the Statement of Work (SOW), all reference material, and attachments, the technical evaluation criteria, and the RFP, in the development of their Technical Proposal

Q10. Understanding that the government may require multiple rounds of follow-up questions to offerors before Final Proposal Revision, will the government please provide an estimated timeline for proposal evaluation and award?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: As of now, NCI is expecting to request Final Proposal Revision by late October 2024 and award the contract by early April 2025. However, the timeline is subject to change.

Q11. Regarding Attachment 3, Task 7:

a. Will the supplier develop the outreach materials?

b. Who is responsible for conducting the outreach?

c. Please describe the scope of the physical outreach activities.

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE:

a. Will the supplier develop the outreach materials? The Government will be responsible for developing the outreach materials.

b. Who is responsible for conducting the outreach? The Government in collaboration with contractor will conduct outreach activities, if necessary.

c. Please describe the scope of the physical outreach activities. The scope of the work will be defined in consultation with the COR after award.

Q12. Please confirm whether NCI will provide the telephony/call management system.

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: Systems, including telecommunications, to be used by the contractor are procured by the Government. The Contractor is responsible for the facilities, security, and equipment necessary to access and comply with those systems. The current systems in use are included in Attachment 3, Task 10 on page 10 of the NCI Contact Center SOW.

Q13. Please confirm whether contractors are to provide the hardware required to perform the services (e.g., laptops, headsets, peripherals).

Amendment 1 Page 4 of 9

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The Government will contract to install all telephony equipment including routers, circuits, and software for soft phones. No other equipment such as laptops or headsets will be provided.

Q14. Solicitation document, p15, (22) Encryption Validation: If the relevant contact center systems used by the contractor will be furnished by the government, what systems does the government expect the contractor to validate?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The Vendor will verify that the encryption solutions in use have been validated under the Cryptographic Module Validation Program to confirm compliance with current FIPS 140 validation certificates from the NIST CMVP.

Q15. Solicitation document, p15, (25) Configuration Management: Does the government expect the contractor to verify security configuration compliance status of government -furnished databases, systems and applications?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: No. The Vendor will use available SCAP- compliant automated tools, per NIST IR 7511, for authenticated scans to provide visibility into the security configuration compliance status of all Vendor IT assets, (computers, servers, routers, databases, operating systems, application, etc.) that store and process government information.

Q16. Solicitation document, p15, (26) Vulnerability Management Plan and Scanning Reports: Is it the expectation that the contractor will identify and manage vulnerabilities of government -furnished databases, systems and applications?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: No. The Vendor will use SCAP-compliant automated tools for authenticated scans to scan information system(s) and detect any security vulnerabilities in all Vendor assets (computers, servers, routers, Web applications, databases, operating systems, etc.) that store and process government information.

Q17. Solicitation document, p19, Period of performance: Is it the expectation that the contractor will begin implementation, training and transition services on May 1, 2025, or that the contractor contact center will go live (i.e., start answering calls) on May 1, 2025?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The contractor is expected to begin work May 1, 2025, and have the contact center go live.

Q18. Solicitation document, p44, Article H.12: Please clarify the nature of the "NIH Publications and Audiovisuals" expected to be prepared, reviewed, and distributed as part of this scope of work.

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: Any and all communications, materials, and NCI publications that are distributed as part of this scope of work, including but not limited to, emails, social media responses, public inquiries, NCI publications, fact sheets, etc. Refer to Attachment 3, Task 8, Section C.

Q19. Attachment 8, page 1: Do these call volumes for 800-4CANCER, 977-44U-QUIT, and 855-QUIT-VET as stated in the first table of the attachment include calls in Spanish?

a. If yes, what is the percentage of calls in Spanish (vs English) for each of these phone lines?

b. If no, what is the additional volume of calls in Spanish for each of these queues?

Amendment 1 Page 5 of 9

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: NCI Contact Center 2022 Volume and Handling Time data is provided in Attachment 8. Spanish calls make up from 7-13% of call volume on 800-4CANCER, 3-10% of call volume on 977-44U-QUIT, and 0-5% call volume on 855-QUIT-VET.

Q20. Attachment 8, page 2: Do these LiveHelp chat volumes for Cancer and Smoking Cessation queues include chats in Spanish?

a. If yes, what is the percentage of chats in Spanish (vs English) for each of these queues?

b. If no, what is the additional volume of chats in Spanish for each of these queues?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: NCI Contact Center 2022 Volume and Handling Time data is provided in Attachment 8. Spanish interactions make up from 25%-35% of Cancer chat volume and from 5-10% of Smoking Cessation chat volume.

Q21. Regarding the Information Specialist role:

a. Please provide the government’s expectations for this role’s background and qualifications.

b. On average, how long does training of a new information specialist takes?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE:

a. Refer to Attachment 5, page 6 and page 8, Header Information Specialists.

b. The current initial training timeline is approximately 8 weeks. Current method of instruction varies.

Q22. Will the government accept a phased transition period in which tasks and workload would be moved over a 6-month period (to be determined in the Transition Plan) from the incumbent to the new contractor?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The transition period is dependent on the date of award and will be a minimum of 30 days. Refer to Attachment 3, page 12, Transition Task 12.

Q23. Please provide details and examples of any telecommunications equipment that NCI will provide for the contractor to install and maintain in contractor’s data center.

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The Government will contract to install all telephony equipment including routers, circuits, and software for soft phones.

Q24. Does any NCI-provided software need to be installed on contractor laptops, or is all software accessible through the web browser?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: Software for soft phones will be installed on contractor computers. All other software is accessible through web browsers.

Q25. Please provide details of specific skills required by the systems administrator role.

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: A systems administrator must be competent and proficient in: a.

Interpersonal communication. b. Knowledge of contact center platforms. c. Configuration of contact center systems. d. Tracking, analyzing, and reporting technical issues/concerns. h. Providing real time support for contact center staff with systems related issues.

Amendment 1 Page 6 of 9

Q26. Please provide a list of specific tasks that the systems administrator is expected to perform on a regular basis.

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: A systems administrator is responsible for the day-to-day configuration, troubleshooting, testing, and general operations of Government furnished systems within the contact center environment.

Q27. Attachment 3, Task 2: Is the task-sharing information about clinical trials only or would trial matching (basic screening) be included?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: We are sharing information about clinical trials providing clinical trial searches and assisting NCI with accruals to Cancer Research studies.

Q28. Attachment 3, Task 2: Is deeper screening included in scope or should it be considered for a pilot project?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The scope for clinical trials information is detailed in Attachment 3, page 4, Task 2. Additional work may be considered for pilot projects depending on the approval of the Government.

Q29. Attachment 3, Task 2: Is recontact for clinical trial outreach included in scope?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: Yes, please refer to Attachment 3, page 4, Task 2, Bullet 3.

Q30. Attachment 3, Task 6: Are the pilot projects included in the RFP cost or would they be “organic growth”?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: Pilot projects should be included in the costs. Assume the pilot project requires six (6) Information specialist/agents and one (1) Supervisors. Please note, this is accounted for in the level of effort.

Q31. Attachment 3, Task 6: Do we need to take any of the mentioned 10 pilot projects in mind into our cost for this proposal?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The list of pilot projects provided are provided as examples. Please assume two (2) Pilot projects per year, for budget assumption, please use question #30 to estimate costs.

Q32. Attachment 3, Task 6: What is the role of the contractor in determining which of the pilot programs to pursue each year?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: Final decisions on pilot projects will be made by the Government.

Q33. What are some of the pain points experienced with the current program?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: Currently, there are no pain points with our current program.

Q34. Are there any specific areas for improvement with the current NCI CIS and VA programs?

Amendment 1 Page 7 of 9

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: Currently, there are no specific areas of improvements, however, NCI/OCPL open to any suggestions/ideas.

Q35. Article H.10.1.A.2.iv (p.30) states that the contractor should “Report any discovered or unanticipated threats or hazards by either the agency or contractor, or if existing safeguards have ceased to function immediately after discovery, within one (1) hour or less, to the government representative(s).” A similar requirement exists in C.24 “Information and Physical Security” (p.15) and H.10.1.D.2.iii (p. 34), which also include a requirement for notification of threats within one (1) hour or less. Will the government modify the 1-hour requirement to a 24-hour requirement?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: In January 2017, OMB Memorandum M-17-12 “Preparing for and Responding to a Breach of Personally Identifiable Information” required every agency to implement more stringent breach notification and response policies and procedures. Therefore, HHS and NIH have incorporated the procedures of reporting within one (1) hour of confirmed breach into the policy. The details can be found at the below link and the updated OMB Memorandum M-24-04:

https://oma.od.nih.gov/DMS/Pages/Privacy-Program-Privacy-Incidents-and-Breach-Response.aspx https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/information-for-agencies/memoranda/

Therefore, the 1-hour requirement throughout the solicitation is complying with NIH policy and will not be modified to a 24-hour requirement.

Q36. Article H.10.1.A.5 (p.31) imposes protection obligations for controlled unclassified information.

Will the government please confirm if CUI is expected to be delivered or generated from this contract and, if so, provide a description of what specific CUI categories will be included?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: Any information covered by the system of records notice(s) (SORN) 09-90- 1901 is applicable.

Q37. Articles H.10.1.A.6 (p. 31), H.10.1.A.12 (p. 32) and H.10.3.A.5 (p. 38) outline a few encryption standards for contractor systems. Please confirm if the government will accept equivalent industry-accepted encryption standards as applicable.

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The accepted standards are defined in Articles H.10.1.A.6 (p. 31), H.10.1.A.12

(p. 32) and H.10.3.A.5.

Q38. The first bullet point under Article H.10.3.A.5.v (p. 39) requires the contractor to “Configur[e] its systems to allow for periodic HHS vulnerability and security configuration assessment scanning.”

Similarly, Article H.10.1.D.2.v (p. 35) requires the contractor to provide “full access” on activities to facilitate incident response.

Please confirm if the government will accept modification of this requirement to allow the contractor to conduct/provide scans without requiring granting external access for vulnerability assessment/scanning to HHS?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The accepted standard is defined in Article H.10.3.A.5.v and Article H.10.1.D.2.v.

https://oma.od.nih.gov/DMS/Pages/Privacy-Program-Privacy-Incidents-and-Breach-Response.aspx

Amendment 1 Page 8 of 9

Q39. Article H.10.1.A.8 (p.32) requires the contractor the comply with Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6).

Please confirm of the government will accept equivalent industry-accepted internet protocol standards?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The accepted standard is defined in Article H.10.1.A.8.

Q40. Article H.10.1.A.12.v (p. 33) requires the contractor to “Use the Key Management system on the HHS personal identification verification (PIV) card or establish and use a key recovery mechanism to ensure the ability for authorized personnel to encrypt/decrypt information and recover encryption keys https://csrc.nist.gov/publications/.”

Please clarify the operations related to this requirement, in terms of any required vendor IT support or ownership.

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The Vendor is required to use the Government provided Key Management system on the HHS personal identification verification (PIV) card or establish and use a key recovery mechanism to ensure the ability for authorized personnel to encrypt/decrypt information and recover encryption keys.

Q41. Article H.10.1.D.2.iv (p. 35) requires the contractor to “Comply with OMB M-17-12, Preparing for and Responding to a Breach of Personally Identifiable Information, and HHS/NIH and NIH privacy breach response policies when handling PII breaches.”

Please confirm if the government will accept equivalent industry-accepted standards.

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The accepted standard is defined in Article H.10.1.D.2.iv.

Q42. Articles H.10.1.H.a and H.10.1.H.b (p. 36) include various general security requirements for Enterprise Performance Life Cycle and HHS System Development Life Cycle. Please confirm if the government will accept equivalent industry-accepted standards.

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The accepted standards are defined in Articles H.10.1.H.a and H.10.1.H.b.

Q43. Article H.11 includes various requirements for Information and Communication Technology Accessibility (HHSAR 352.239-79, Deviation). Please advise what planned contractor activities or systems are expected to be in scope of this requirement.

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: Please see the 508 standards on page 43 of the solicitation.

Q44. Page 12 of the SOW: The Contractor shall provide a physically secure facility for people, equipment, and documentation. All security requirements apply to the Contractor facility, alternative facility, or any subcontractor facilities. Will NIH allow a secure remote work plan?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The Government will consider all work plans that meet the defined security requirements.

Q45. Page 81 of the Solicitation: Is the current contractor able to meet all expected performance targets and KPIs with the number of hours for each LCAT identified in the LOE table?

https://csrc.nist.gov/publications/

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GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: Contractor Performance information may not be released to other than Government personnel and the contractor whose performance is being evaluated in accordance with FAR Part 42.

Q46. Page 1 of the Attachment 9: NCI anticipates awarding one Cost-plus Fixed Fee, Level of Effort (CPFF LOE) type contract (for For-Profit Organizations) or cost-reimbursement no fee (for Non-Profit and Universities). How will the government ensure a fair price evaluation process that equitably considers the proposals from both for-profit and non-profit vendors, given their differing cost structures?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: NCI cost evaluators will evaluate cost elements and fee, line by line, for both cost structures. Usually, Non-Profits and Universities show zero in the fee line. Therefore, the cost evaluation process will take this into consideration and look at each cost line, separating direct v.

indirect costs, and fee. Each type of cost/fee will be evaluated for reasonableness separately. The cost evaluators will use this information to determine a reasonable price range.

Q47. Task 5 of the SOW: Will the contractor have access to the knowledgebase to directly upload, edit, etc. knowledge articles?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: Yes.

Q48. Page 33 Bullet v of the Solicitation: It appears that contractors may be required to have a PIV card.

Please provide a list of approved PIV locations so that contractors can consider travel needs when selecting contractor sites.

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: Refer to Other Remote Processing Options, https://ors.od.nih.gov/ser/dpsac/contact/Pages/other-remote-processing-options.aspx.

Q49. Section M of the Solicitation: Will the government provide notification to vendors if they did or did not pass the Mandatory Qualification factor?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: The Government will notify the vendor if they are not in the Competitive Range.

Q50. Will the Government accept independent assessment confirming offeror's accounting system is compliant with Standard Form (SF) 1408 "Pre-award Survey of Prospective Contractor Accounting System," relevant parts of Defense FAR Supplement 252.242-7006, Accounting System Administration, and the Cost Accounting Standards (CAS)?

GOVERNMENT RESPONSE: Yes. The Government will accept independent assessment showing SF 1408 compliance.

https://ors.od.nih.gov/ser/dpsac/contact/Pages/other-remote-processing-options.aspx