ATTACH P - OPTN OPS Vendor QR (Final RFP).pdf

No.

QUESTION

CATEGORY

QUESTION RESPONSES

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** B.2, G8, and L.7.3; pg 2 and 17 of 94: B.2 and G.8 indicate the Government intends to issue “Cost-Share Cost-reimbursement” task orders under the awarded IDIQ. FAR 16.303 defines a cost-sharing contract as “a cost-reimbursement contract in which the contractor receives no fee and is reimbursed only for an agreed-upon portion of its allowable costs” which may be used “when the contractor agrees to absorb a portion of the costs, in the expectation of substantial compensating benefits.”

Q1. Is it the Government’s intent to award cost-share cost-reimbursement task orders under this IDIQ?

Q2. If not, we suggest the Government replace B.2’s and G.8’s “Cost-Share Cost-reimbursement” with “Cost-Plus Fixed-Fee,” as implied by B.4 subparagraph 5 Fixed Fee, which requires Offerors to propose a fixed fee range for cost-reimbursement and FFP task orders.

Q3. The L.7.3 indicates the awardable and non-awardable task orders (RFP Attachments J-O) are “cost-reimbursement.” Since RFP Attachment H includes a field for Fixed Fee, are we correct in assuming the awardable and non-awardable task orders are cost-plus fixed-fee?

Q1. It is the Government's intention to allow for a hybrid of Firm-fixed Price, Cost-share, Cost-reimbursment types, or Time & Material contracts for task orders issued under this multiple-award IDIQ. However, all Awardable Task Orders at the time of the Operations IDIQ award are cost-reimbursement only. Future contract types will be identified at the task order level.

Q2. The fixed-fee structure applies only to Cost-Plus-Fixed-Fee task order contract types.

Q3. Yes, the awardable and non-awardable Task Orders are Cost-Plus-Fixed-Fee type contracts. Please see Solicitation Amendment 0001.

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G.4 Key Personnel: HRSA states "It is anticipated that the PM shall be one of the senior level employees provided by the contractor for this work effort." HRSA lists this senior resource as a Project Manager. Would HRSA please confirm that they are specifying a role only (not a Labor Category) and that contractors may bid any labor category aligned with their submitted solution.

Individuals identified as "Key Personnel" must possess the requirements described in Section G.4. In reference to this section, Project Manager is a role, and is a key personnel of the IDIQ contract.

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SECTION K – REPRESENTATIONS, CERTIFICATIONS, AND OTHER

STATEMENTS OF OFFEROR Page 52 Section K.1 States "The Offeror is cautioned that the listed provisions may include blocks that must be completed by the Offeror and submitted with its offer." In addition, there are several other sections within Section K that require the Offeror to complete the fill-ins. Can the Government please advise where the Offeror should include the completed Section K within it's Phase 2 submission? Which Volume?

Section K, Representations and Certifications, shall be submitted along with Volume V, Business Proposal.

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Referencing F.4 and Attachment F instructions. It is anticipated that no services or deliveries shall be performed on Saturdays, Sundays or Federal legal holidays, or any other Government closures unless superseded by the language set forth in individual task orders. Question: The sample task orders do not appear to supersede the language in F.4. So does that mean that HRSA does not anticipate the contractors working on weekends or federal holidays?

The Government anticipates that some task orders will require 24/7/365 support.

However, this information will be identified at the task order level.

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Attachment H - LCAT Pricing Template Cell B5 on the "Cost Summary" tab reads "Director Labor." Should this be "Direct Labor?"

Please see Solicitation Amendment 0001.

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Referencing F.4 and Attachment F instructions. It is anticipated that no services or deliveries shall be performed on Saturdays, Sundays or Federal legal holidays, or any other Government closures unless superseded by the language set forth in individual task orders. Question: The sample task orders do not appear to supersede the language in F.4. Does this provision only apply to onsite Contractors?

The Government anticipates that some task orders will require 24/7 365, which includes weekends, evenings, and holidays. However, this information will be identified at the task order level.

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Section B.4 Cost Reimbursable Task Order Section B.4 indicates each task order awarded under the IDIQ on a cost reimbursement basis, "The proposed labor rates shall not exceed the ceiling rates set forth in Section B.3. Section B.4.2 Unloaded Labor Category (LCAT) Ceiling Rates (Cost-reimbursement Task Orders) states, "The maximum unloaded hourly rates (found in Attachment H – LCAT Pricing Template) are ceiling rates for the life of the contract. These rates will be utilized for all Cost Reimbursement task orders. Please clarify which set of rates will be utilized as the ceiling rates allowable under cost reimbursable task order - the unloaded labor rates in Attachment H or the fully burdened labor rates.

The unloaded labor rates applied to Attachment H - LCAT Pricing Template will be used as ceiling rates for all Cost-reimbursement contracts for the life of the IDIQ.

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E.3The QASP will be completed and initiated at Task Order level. We see requirement for the QASP with awardable and non-awardable tasks (Section L Phase 2 requirements). However we do not see instructions in the RFP or the Att. O, including in the deliverables list for the QASP. Please provide instructions regarding into which volume the QASP is to be included and please provide any evaluation Factors.

Please reference L.7.3 of Solicitation Amendment 0001.

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Section B Since there are a few tables in Section B requiring data to be inserted (i.e. Tables found in Sections B.3.2, B.4.2, B.4.4.c and B.5) in which volume and in which Section should Section B of the RFP be included ? Or will section B be completed after contract award?

Tables found in Section B shall be completed and submitted in Volume V, Business Proposal (see Section L for instructions).

ATTACH P OPTN OPERATIONS IDIQ VENDOR QUESTIONS & RESPONSES (FINAL RFP)

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RFP ATT H LCAT Template; All:

Q1. Please clarify how Offerors are to complete the Cost Summary Tab and CLIN Summary Tab. (a) Do the provided CLIN numbers track to the base and four option pricing for each Domain? (b) If so, are Offerors to insert an additional Cost Summary Tab and CLIN Summary Tab for each proposed Domain? (c) How are Offerors to calculate a total for each CLIN when the Domain-specific tabs provide only for hourly rates? (d) Does the Government intend to provide a notional number of hours by LCAT/year for each Domain, for the purpose of calculating CLIN totals for evaluation purposes?

Q.2 Each Attachment H Domain-specific tab shows a base period and four options. Based on the tab titles and the fact that the Task Order periods of performance are 9 months and 12 months, it appears Attachment H is structured only for proposing vehicle-level rates. Does the Government intend to provide a pricing template for each of the awardable and non-awardable Task Orders, in which Offerors will price their proposed level of effort specific to each Task Order?

Q1. (a) Yes (b) Yes, one Cost Summary Tab and CLIN Summary Tab per proposed domain (c) and (d) Attachment H has been revised. There are no requirements for CLINs. Q2. The Base plus Option Period pricing establishes loaded and unloaded hourly rates for the IDIQ performance period, which filter down to the rates applied at the Task Order level, regardless of task order length.

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The government states on page 2, Section B.3.2 we need to price loaded rates on Firm Fixed Price Task Orders, however no specification as to Time and Materials Task Orders. The Contract Type as described in Section B.2 is a Hybrid (Firm-Fixed price, Cost-Share Cost-reimbursement, and Time & Materials). Please confirm loaded rates can be utilized for all Time and Materials orders.

Unloaded rates from the table under Section B.4 will be used for Time & Materials type TOs.

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Please clarify the minimum education and years of experience requirements for the provided labor categories. This will ensure Offerors propose uniform pricing.

The minimum education and experience requirements apply only to Key Personnel, identified at the IDIQ or Task Order level.

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Question 484 of the Vendor Questions and Responses Question 484 reads -Attachment H: Must rates be proposed for all labor categories listed on each separate Domain tab? The response was yes. To clarify, does this mean if an offeror is just planning to respond to Domain 3 they are still required to complete labor rates for all the other Domain tabs?

Offerors are only required to complete and submit tabs for the domain(s) in which they intend to propose.

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General:

For pricing purposes, what start date should Offerors use for the vehicle-level pricing and Task Order pricing?

The anticipated start date is in September 2024.

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Please update the LCAT Definitions to include all of the labor categories mentioned in Domains 1 through 4. It seems like there labor categories listed on Domain-specific tabs that are not included on the LCAT Definition tabs. As a result, vendors will not have a consistent definition for the missing LCATS when completing their Business Vol.

Please see Soliciation Amendment 0001.

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Attachment H - LCAT Pricing Template If the offeror is only planning to submit a proposal for Domain 3, is it acceptable to delete all the other Domain tabs and only submit Domain 3?

No, please do not alter the Attachment H - LCAT Pricing Template.

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With HRSA's acknowledgement that "all functions of the OPTN have been managed by a single vendor and not competed separately based on technical expertise in areas like IT or operations", only the incumbent or Accenture (its subcontractor) could provide competitive pricing for the IDIQ Task Orders (Attachments J, K, L, M, N, O). Therefore will the Government please provide estimated labor hours per labor category for each of the task orders (Attachments J, K, L, M, N, O) to allow for competitive responses?

The Operations IDIQ is a performance-based requirement, accompanied by a Performance Work Statement (PWS) at the IDIQ level, as well as for each awardable and the non-awardable Task Order. The Government expects for Offerors to propose the approporiate level of effort necessary to meet the Government's needs. Please see Solicitation Amendment 0001.

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Attachment H - LCAT Pricing Template The cost elements contained in the Cost Summary tab do not align with the cost elements contained on the CLIN Summary tab.

For instance, the Cost Summary tab includes a cost element line for Consultants, Equipment and Supplies and Subcontracts which are not included on the CLIN Summary tab. Please clarify where within the CLIN Summary tab are costs associated wit Consultants, Equipment and Supplies, and subcontracts are to be captured on the CLIN Summary tab.

The "CLIN Summary Tab" should not align with the "Cost Summary Tab", which is a display of all proposed costs by cost element rather than by CLIN. Please see Solicitation Amendment 0001.

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Attachment H - LCAT Pricing Template The 'LCAT Definitions' tab provides a LCAT Definition for the labor categories listed on this particular tab. However, there are many labor categories on each of the Domain tabs that do not have a corresponding labor category definition on the 'LCAT Definitions' tab. Will the Government please update Attachment H, the 'LCAT Definitions' tab to include a labor category definition for each category?

Please see Solicitation Amendment 0001.

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Attachment H - LCAT Pricing Template The 'LCAT Definitions' tab provides a description for each of the labor categories listed, but doesn't identify the corresponding educational/experience requirements. Does the Government plan to include the educational/experience expectations for each labor category?

The minimum education and experience requirements apply only to Key Personnel, identified at the IDIQ or Task Order level.

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Attachment H - LCAT Pricing Template The Government's response to Question 398 states that "the Offeror shall not modify Attachment H - LCAT Pricing Template in any way. Rather, Offerors can submit an additional form to identify costs not captured on the Attachment H - LCAT Pricing Template." If Offerors are not permitted to modify Attachment H to include the required Task Order (Awardable, Optional, or Sample) pricing detail, can the Government clarify where Offerors should include the additional form?

Attachment H is the offeror's proposed ceiling rates, at the IDIQ level, to be used as negotiated rates for the TOs. Please submit TO pricing separate from Attachment H.

All TO pricing should be in accordance with Section L.7, Volume V.

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RFP Section K identifies Representations and Certifications, some of which require signatures. Please verify in which volume Offerors should include the completed Representations and Certifications.

Section K, Representations and Certifications, shall be submitted along with Volume V, Business Proposal.

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The government's set of answers skips #445. If there is a question/answer #445, we request it be released. Item #445 was blank, no actual question was submitted, therefore it was omitted.

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Attachment H - LCAT Pricing Template The Government's response to Question 30 regarding the inclusion of subcontractor pricing within the Prime Offerors rates, states that Subcontractor pricing will be negotiated at the Task Order level. Yet, the Government's response to Question 391 about the inclusion of subcontractors and/or consultant costs states that it should be included in Vol V separate from Attachment H. The response to these two questions seem to be in conflict. Can the Government confirm subcontractor rate information should not be included in attachment H and volume V unless utilized in the performance of the task orders?

Other Direct Costs, to include subcontractor costs that cannot be captured by the LCATs described in Attachmnet H, shoud not be included in Attachment H and Volumne V unless necessary for the performance of the TO.

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Attachment H - LCAT Pricing Template The Government's response to Questions 398, 449, and 458 clearly state that Offerors are not to modify Attachment H in any way. The inability to alter Attachment H (the Domain tabs) to accurately reflect an Offerors accounting structure to identify and include any indirect rates places the Offeror in a significant compliance risk with their disclosed practices, especially given the requirement to provide data consistent with Table 15-2 of FAR Part 15.408. In addition the inability to modify Attachment H accordingly will not provide the Government with the Fully Loaded Hourly Rate (FLHR) requested on the Domain tabs. Will the Government please reconsider their response to Questions 398, 449, and 458 and allow Offerors to modify Attachment H?

No, please do not alter the Attachment H - LCAT Pricing Template. Please see Solicitation Amendment 0001.

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Regarding the government's answer to question # 283 . Attachment G. Re: the instructions to provide "Teaming Arrangement Identification: Identify and describe any teaming arrangements or partnerships you have established for this contract. Include the names of the organizations involved, and their roles and responsibilities." Question: Please clarify the information requested is about the teaming on the contract referenced in the prior experience summary and not the OPTN Transition contract.

The Government's answer was "Attachment G refers to the Phase 1 "Prior Experience Summaries" only."

Our clarification question: On the Attachment G, in the field that requires Teaming Arrangement Information, does the Government expect the Offeror to enter information about Teaming Arrangements that were used on the prior experience being addressed in the Attachment G OR Teaming Arrangements as proposed on the OPTN operations contract? Given the form addresses the prior experience, and the Phase 1 requirements include providing proposed Teaming Arrangement information, Offerors need this clarification in order to ensure they provide the required information.

Attachment G's Teaming Arrangement Identification area is where the offeror will identify and describe any teaming arrangements or partnerships they have established for this solicitation. Phase 1 only requires the identification and description of the Teaming Arrangement. See Section L.7.2 for Phase 2 required documentation (e.g., written agreement, cost/price data).

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ATTACHMENT C - DISCLOSURE OF LOBBYING ACTIVITIES

The Final RFP contains ATTACHMENT C - DISCLOSURE OF LOBBYING ACTIVITIES, however there is no reference to Attachment C within the RFP instructions. Can the Government clarify whether this Attachment is required or not? If required, where should the Offeror include the completed Attachment C in its response?

All Offerors shall submit Attachment C - Disclosure of Lobbying Activities, regardless of applicability, as part of their Volume V submission.

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SECTION K – REPRESENTATIONS, CERTIFICATIONS, AND OTHER STATEMENTS OF OFFEROR (Page 52). Please confirm that Representations and Certifications should be submitted as an appendix to the Business volume.

Section K, Representations and Certifications, shall be submitted along with Volume V, Business Proposal.

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Attachment H - LCAT Pricing Template

414 L.6.1 requests unburdened hourly rates used to generate fully-burdened rates in Attachment H be supported by payroll records. B.2.2 requests unburdened ceiling rates. Should the unloaded labor rates used as the basis of development for fully loaded labor rates in Attachment H be ceiling rates, or actual billing rates? Answer: Yes.

Would the government please clarify its response to Question 414. Should the offeror use ceiling rates or actual billing rates?

The unloaded and loaded hourly rates will be used as ceiling rates for the life of the contract.

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The header of Appendix E of ATTACH A PWS is labeled “Appendix E: Sample Scenario for Domain 1 Operations”, but the title in the document is “Sample Task Order, Title: Domain 2 OPTN Operations, April 29, 2024”. Can HRSA please confirm that the text in Appendix E is related to Domain 2 Operations and not Domain 1 Transformation Services?

Please see Solicitation Amendment 0001.

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OPTN OPS - Vendor Questions and Responses (Draft RFP).pdf Q 134

Are Offerors required to upload teaming agreements alongside of Attachment G and any artifacts included in Phase 1?

Attachment G's Teaming Arrangement Identification area is where the offeror will identify and describe any teaming arrangements or partnerships they have established for this solicitation. Phase 1 only requires the identification and description of the Teaming Arrangement. See Section L.7.2 for Phase 2 required documentation (e.g., written agreement, cost/price data).

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Can HRSA please provide a Sample Task Order for Domain 1 Transformation Services? Please see Attachments J, K, and L for examples of Domain 1 task orders.

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Attachment H - LCAT Pricing Template

“On the LCAT Definitions tab of Attachment H, there are duplicate roles, such as the Data Governance Manager (28 and 29) and Program Manager (72 and 73). Would the government please update the spreadsheet to remove duplicate roles?”

Attachment H has been revised. Please see Solicitation Amendment 0001.

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Attachment H - LCAT Pricing Template

Does the Quality Assurance Analyst role on the LCAT Definitions tab of Attachment H correspond to one of the Quality Assurance roles listed on the LCAT (Domain3) tab, such as Quality Assurance Data Analyst, Quality Assurance Engineer, or Software Quality Assurance Analysts?

Please see Solicitation Amendment 0001.

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OPTN OPS - Vendor Questions and Responses (Draft RFP).pdf Q 149

Answer to Q149 states "The Prime is required to submit the Attachment G - Prior Experience Summary; one or more summaries per domain. A Primes submission may include prior experience of their subcontractor, as long as the summary clearly demonstrates the Primes predominance in the participation and performance, and ability to meet the past performance evaluation criteria metrics."

Can government confirm the Prime is unable to submit a subcontractor's past performance for inclusion in Phase I unless the Prime participated in the subcontractor's performance?

Prior Experience Summaries may include prior experience from a subcontractor;

however, subcontractor experience must be a minority of submitted summaries (in terms of count, e.g., 2 out of 5 summaries).

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Would the Government please confirm the Product Service Code (PSC) Q999, Medical-Other is intended for Government classification purposes and Offerors are not required to list the PSC Q999 in their Sam.gov registration?

Yes, that is correct.

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Please confirm that the IDIQ is an initial 12 month period + option years (so will be exercised every year) Yes, that is correct.

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B4, #5 states, "The Offeror shall propose a fixed fee structure for the cost reimbursement and firm fixed price type task orders."

Should we provide a fixed-fee structure for cost reimbursement and a payment schedule for the firm fixed price?

Please see Solicitation Amendment 0001.

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Section: SECTION B – SUPPLIES OR SERVICES AND PRICES/COSTS Reference: P.6 states that “Individual task orders may be awarded on a cost reimbursement, cost share, labor hour, time and material, firm-fixed price, or any combination. Task orders will be fully funded at the time of award and may contain option periods.”

Question: Offerors may potentially seek to form teaming arrangements or subcontracts with qualified industry firms, including commercial service providers or non-traditional small businesses, to fulfill the IDIQ's scope. However, many industry firms may not be able to support non-FFP contract structures due to requirements for certified government accounting systems or specific timekeeping systems needed for variable invoicing based on actual hours worked. To enhance contract flexibility and provide the Government with the most relevant expertise, will the Government permit FFP subcontracts to be proposed as distinct line items within non-FFP task orders (e.g., cost reimbursement, cost share, labor hour, time and material), especially when these services are essential to completing the task order requirements?

Not at this time, but HRSA appreciates your question and/or feedback.

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Is a nonprofit organization that falls below the size standard for the applicable NAICS code (often referred to as “other than small”) considered a small business or a large business with respect to 1) the small business participation plan requirements and 2) the small business subcontracting plan requirement?

Based on the description, that organization would fall under the "small business" classification. However, the government would need to evaluate the specific details to be sure.

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Please confirm that subcontractors are not required to submit payroll documentation. The Government will only accept solicitation submission from Prime contractors. All subcontractor technical or cost information should be submitted to the Prime, to submit along with their proposal to the Government.

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Please confirm that subcontractors are not required to submit indirect cost information The Government will only accept solicitation submission from Prime contractors. All subcontractor technical or cost information should be submitted to the Prime, to submit along with their proposal to the Government.

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If small business partners for each socioeconomic category for which there are goals have not been specifically identified at the time of proposal, but which an offeror is committed to identifying to fulfill goals over the life of the IDIQ, may an offeror include “TBD” partners in the Small Business Participation Plan and Small Business Subcontracting Plan indicating as such?

No, Small Business Subcontracting Plans and Small Business Participation Plans must be approved and executable prior to IDIQ and/or Task Order award.

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The Draft RFP stated a Phase II submission due date of 6/25/2024. The Final RFP states a Phase II submission due date of 6/14/2024. Given the substantive changes made to the RFP, and resource/vacation planning made for the original due date, can the government consider shifting the Phase II due date to 6/25/2024 or later?

Not at this time, but HRSA appreciates your question and/or feedback.

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Some vendors intending to respond as a Prime, or team with a Prime contractor, as a Subcontractor, do not perform services on an hourly nor Cost-Reimbursement basis and exclusively perform on a Firm-Fixed Price basis. For this reason, HHS agencies have regularly benefited from expanding pricing requirements to allow for fixed price bids based upon a vendor’s detailed description of the project in their technical response and their respective commercial pricing practices at the Task Order level.

This approach enables more cost-effective options, transfers potential schedule and cost risk to the bidder, incentivizes bidder efficiency, eases agency project management burden, and ensures maximized competition and an inclusive procurement open to all qualified bidders able to successfully deliver on the scope of work. The final RFP’s Section B and Attachment H apply restrictions which may substantially limit the number of qualified vendors that are able to respond to the solicitation. Given Offeror (and Subcontractor) limitations to perform on a cost reimbursable basis and HRSA’s ability to assess price reasonableness on the basis of adequate price competition, will HRSA amend the solicitation instructions in Section B., and in Attachment H LCAT Pricing Template, to expand the acquisition method to allow Offerors (and Subcontractors) to complete a Cost-Reimbursement and/or Firm Fixed Price rate cards for the IDIQ to establish maximum ceiling rates for each type of future Task Order?

Attachment H has been revised to capture LCAT rates for the prime and subcontractor. Any other cost/pricing requirements should be submitted in accordance with the Business Proposal requirements. This should allow vendors more flexibility to price out future Task Orders.

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For, "(Firm-Fixed price, Cost-Share Cost-reimbursement, and Time & Materials)" please confirm a comma between Cost-Share and Cost-Reimbursement. If confirmed, what are the Cost-Share requirements for this contract?

Please see Solicitation Amendment 0001.

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Performing Cost-Reimbursable services is not customary to some Offerors’ commercial practices, instead such Offerors exclusively perform on a Firm Fixed Price basis. While the pricing of a unit/deliverable/milestone may be unknown at IDIQ proposal submission, Offerors could propose their commercial rates for the purpose of establishing a rate card which could be utilized for Task Order pricing under this line item. Amending the solicitation to allow Offerors to price per their practices (e.g.

those who cannot perform cost-reimbursable services amongst limitations in the solicitation, and therefore cannot provide hourly pricing per Attachment H) would benefit HRSA as this increases the breadth of technically qualified Offerors who could serve HRSA, and increases the competition of qualified vendors amongst industry for this solicitation. In accordance with FAR 52.204- 22 Alternative Line Proposals, will HRSA add a firm fixed price commercial line item (or similar construct) in the RFP Attachment H LCAT Pricing Template, and/or confirm this CLIN may be added in the resultant IDIQ for use in applicable Task Order(s)?

Not at this time, but HRSA appreciates your question and/or feedback.

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For the statement, "Consultant fees or other payments to consultants required in the performance of this contract shall not exceed the daily rate of $750/day," can HRSA define Consultant in this context, as differentiated from any other LCATs or roles defined for the contract?

Consultant, in this context, is an outside subject matter expert differentiated from any other LCATs or roles defined for the contract. Note that this requirement has been removed.

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Will HRSA please confirm that subcontractors who only perform services on a firm-fixed-price (FFP) basis could have the opportunity to support at the Task Order level without needing to supply the same level of cost detail as the prime contractor? We understand this may be dependent on the requirements in the FFP (or cost reimbursable) Task Order(s).

Offerors that wish to propose as a Prime shall be able to support the hybrid model of contract types per the solicitation.

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"Key Personnel for the IDIQ contract: Project Manager" what are the submission requirements for this resume? Shall it be assumed that this resume can be any format and length and that it's outside 15 page limit for the Volume II Administrative and Contract Management Approach? Given the answer 58 from Q&A: "Yes, the Project Manager is a designated key personnel for the IDIQ contract. Please include a resume and any applicable information in Volume II, Administrative and Contract Management Approach. Resumes will not be counted in the overall page count."

Please see Solicitation Amendment 0001.

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Will HRSA please confirm that the prime contractor may request to add subcontractors upon client written consent as needed on a Task Order by Task Order basis during execution of the IDIQ?

HRSA will review the request on an as-needed basis at the TO level. If it is anticipated that a subcontractor is required, please account for it in your IDIQ proposal.

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The ensuing award will be a Hybrid (Firm-Fixed price, Cost-Share Cost-reimbursement, and Time & Materials) contract. There is a statement on page 5 of 94 (item 4.) that indicates that the allowable indirect costs will be established per FAR, and they will be ceiling rates. Is this detail required from subcontractors as well? If so, please confirm this information would need to be supplied as a sealed bid?

The Government will only accept solicitation submission from Prime contractors. All subcontractor technical or cost information should be submitted to the Prime, to submit along with their proposal to the Government.

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Draft RFP Q&A #30 states, “Please refer to Attachment H, LCAT Pricing Template for the rate breakdown structure. Unloaded hourly rates should include only direct labor. Pricing for subcontracting will be negotiated at the Task Order level.” Can HRSA please clarify that Phase I is not requesting subcontractor pricing, and this shall be requested and determined at the Task Order level?

Yes, that is correct. Please reference the Final RFP.

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Can HRSA please clarify the requested information for the “subcontractor” line item in the “Cost Summary” tab of Attachment H? Please see Solicitation Amendment 0001.

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Given some Offerors exclusively perform on a firm-fixed price basis using commercial rates, they are not required and do not possess a cost accounting system. Will HRSA amend the solicitation, so that Offerors who exclusively offer commercial services are still able to respond to the solicitation, without submitting a breakout of unloaded hourly rates, fringe, overhead, G&A, fee, and other cost data in? Doing so would benefit HRSA, as this increases the breadth of technically qualified Offerors serving across public and private sectors who could serve HRSA, and increases competition among industry’s best vendors for this solicitation.

Due to FAR Part 15 requirements, not at this time, but HRSA appreciates your question and/or feedback.

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Would the Government please provide editable documents for submission of Attachment E, Attachment F, and Attachment I? Word versions will be provided in the amended solicitation.

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Attachment G - states "Identify and describe any teaming arrangements or partnerships you have established for this contract.

Include the names of the organizations involved, and their roles and responsibilities" is this clarification specific to prior experience referenced OR for the current solicitation?

Attachment G's Teaming Arrangement Identification area is where the offeror will identify and describe any teaming arrangements or partnerships they have established for this solicitation. Phase 1 only requires the identification and description of the Teaming Arrangement. See Section L.7.2 for Phase 2 required documentation (e.g., written agreement, cost/price data).

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For consistency and to streamline the DUA process, would the government sign appropriate agreements with all entities providing data, then allow the contractor to act on the government’s behalf in respect to that data? Any actions taken by the Contractor will be done on behalf of the government and constrained by the contract terms.

Thank you for your feedback. This will be addressed at the task order level.

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Will the $24.5M size standard for NAICS code 541611 be considered the threshold in determining whether a company is considered a Small Business for the Small Business Participation Plan?

Yes.

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Can the government please provide detailed instructions for responding to the awardable and sample task orders - Attachments J- O.

Please see Solicitation Amendment 0001.

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For the awardable task orders, work that requires assessment, such as review and mapping, the PMP should highly align with the mapping plan; will the government consider aligning the due dates for these deliverables in order to obtain finished products that are aligned with the broader stakeholder engagement plan?

Not at this time, but HRSA appreciates your question and/or feedback.

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Can the government please provide evaluation criteria for the awardable and sample task orders - Attachments J-O. The awardable Task Orders will not be individually evaluated for technical acceptability therefore evaluation criteria is not utilized for Task Orders awarded at the time of IDIQ award. However, future Task Ordes will include instructions and evaluation criteria, accordingly.

Solicitation Sections A - J

"In the OPTN Vendor and Questions Responses, HRSA responded that: “Section L.3.1 is revised to read, "Offerors shall submit one (1) or more Attachment G - Prior Experience Summary, along with no more than nine (9) related case study artifacts, and no more than five (5) pages per Attachment G, for each domain for which they intend to propose. For example, Offeror proposes for Domains 1 and 3...Offeror shall submit one (1) or more Attachment G for Domain 1, with no more than nine (9) artifacts and no more than five (5) pages for Domain 1, and Offeror shall submit one (1) or more Attachment G for Domain 3, with no more than nine (9) artifacts and no more than five (5) pages for Domain 3.”

Since multiple attachments G are allowed, please confirm that each Attachment G is 5 pages. For example, if an offeror choses to submit two prior experience summaries with two separate Attachment G's for Domain 3, that the total page count would be 10 pages (5 pages per each Attachment G)."

Yes, each Attachment G/Summary should be 5 pages max.

Solicitation Sections A - J

Attachment G- Submission of Artifacts: Please confirm that HRSA will accept deliverables that are redacted to protect client proprietary information.

Yes, that is correct. However, redacted artifacts shall reveal enough information for the Government to properly evaluate in accordance with Section M of the solicitation.

Solicitation Sections A - J

Attachment G- Submission of Artifacts: Please confirm that HRSA will accept deliverables that are redacted to protect client proprietary information.

Yes, that is correct. However, redacted artifacts shall reveal enough information for the Government to properly evaluate in accordance with Section M of the solicitation.

Solicitation Sections A - J

Will the government please confirm that the government responses in the document titled OPTN Operations IDIQ Vendor Questions and Responses (DRAFT RFP) are considered a part of the solicitation package released on May 2, 2024, solicitation notice ID- 75R60224R00008_FINAL.

Yes.

Solicitation Section L - Instructions, Conditions and Notices to Offeror

The Government's submission dates for Phase 1 (Prior Experience Summary) and Phase 2 (Volumes II, III, IV and V) are May 24, 2024 and June 14, 2024. Considering the three week period between phase 1 and phase 2, what is the anticipated date the government will notify vendors they were downselected?

The Government anticipates notifying vendors of the advisory downs elect during the first week of June.

Solicitation Section L - Instructions, Conditions and Notices to Offeror

Will HRSA allow for a second Q&A for Phase 2 and Awardable TO post down select? Not at this time, but HRSA appreciates your question and/or feedback.

Solicitation Section L - Instructions, Conditions and Notices to Offeror

When will the Phase I down select be announced? The Government anticipates notifying vendors of the advisory downselect during the first week of June.

Solicitation Section L - Instructions, Conditions and Notices to Offeror

L.1.3Given the government is allowing images outside of page count, Offerors need to know how to provide the images. E.g., does the government want Offerors to provide a separate unnumbered page following the numbered text page, Or as appendices to the technical proposal (outside of page count) Or is this entirely within the Offerors discretion?

Images, display graphics, flow charts, organizational charts, or drawings that are not incorporated directly into the proposal, shall be submitted as an appendix to the respective volume. Please see Solicitation Amendment 0001.

Solicitation Section L - Instructions, Conditions and Notices to Offeror

Please confirm that the teaming agreement required in phase 1, volume 1 are not included in the 5 page limit. Teaming Arrangements should be included as an attachment to the Prior Experience Summary and will not be counted towards the 5 page limit.

Solicitation Section L - Instructions, Conditions and Notices to Offeror

L.4 subpara 2 and L.4.1 FACTOR A; pg 70 and 71 of 94: L.4 subparagraph 2 states “Volume II shall not exceed 15 pages, excluding appendices,” and L.4.1 Factor A states “Emphasize your strategies for continuous improvement, highlighting areas relevant to the domain.”

Q.1 Since Volume II is intended to address the IDIQ level, are we correct in assuming Offerors’ FACTOR A should highlight areas relevant to each domain being proposed?

Q.2 If so, the 15-page limitation allows Offerors proposing fewer domains to provide additional process improvement detail per domain than Offerors proposing more domains. Please reconsider the Volume II page count to ensure each Offeror has the same opportunity to provide detailed process improvement information for the domains being proposed, regardless of the number of domains being proposed.

L.5 and L.6; pg 75-78 of 94: L.5 addresses Past Performance (Volume IV), and L.6 addresses Small Business Participation Plan (Volume IV). Are Offerors to submit two separate Volumes IV, or are Offerors to combine Past Performance, CPARs Ratings, and Small Business Participation Plan in a single Volume IV?

L.5; pg 75-76 of 94: Please confirm that Offerors may submit either a completed Past Performance Questionnaire OR a finalized CPARs for each past performance reference, as long as at least one of these items is submitted for each of the required three past performance references per proposed domain.

L.6; pg 77 of 94: L.6 references (1) a “Subcontracting Plan” under the Technical/Management factor, (2) a Small Business Subcontracting Plan IAW FAR 52.219, and (3) a Small Business Participation Plan.

Q1. Are these three separate plans?

Q2. If the “Subcontracting Plan” is different than the Small Business Subcontracting Plan and Small Business Participation Plan,

(a) what must it contain, (b) where in which technical volume must Offerors submit it, and (c) are we correct in assuming it is not included in any applicable technical volume page limitation?

Q3. Are Offerors to provide both a Small Business Subcontracting Plan and a Small Business Participation Plan in Volume IV? If not, please clarify where in the proposal these two plans are to be submitted.

L.4 Q1: Volume II requirements are relevant to the IDIQ level and only 1 single Volume II is required regardless of the number of Domains being proposed.

L.4 Q2: Regardless of the number of domains being proposed, the number of pages should still be the same.

L.5 and L.6: Past Performance and Small Business Participation Plan should be combined into 1 single Volume IV.

L.5: Offerors may submit either a completed Past Performance Questionnaire OR a finalized CPARS for each of the required 3 past performance references.

L.6 Q1: This is the same subcontracting plan. Document reference is revised for consistency.

Solicitation Section L - Instructions, Conditions and Notices to Offeror

L.7; pg 78 of 94: L.7 states “Offerors shall submit a separate, stand-alone Volume V, Business Proposal, for each Domain in which they intend to propose.” In addition to Domain-specific pricing information, Offerors are required to include their proposed IDIQ-level maximum labor rates and the prime contractor responsibility information required by L.7.2 in every Domain-specific Volume V?

L.7.2 Subpara 2; pg 80 of 94: L.7.2 states “Offerors who submit a proposal as a joint venture, LLC, or other teaming arrangements shall provide full and complete cost and financial information for each of the participating firms, as well as the proposed teaming arrangement’s organization itself;” and “Offerors are to include a copy of the charter/organizational document(s) that govern the relationships between the Joint Ventures, LLCs, or other Teaming Arrangements.”

Q1. Subcontractors/Teaming Partners typically consider cost and financial information to be highly competition sensitive and will not provide this information directly to the Prime Contractor. Please confirm Subcontractors/Teaming Partners may provide this information directly to the Government via email.

L.1 Subpara 16; pg 66-67 of 94: L.1 Subparagraph 16 Phase 2 Submission Requirements for Awardable Task Orders and Submission Requirements for Non-Awardable Task Order (Attachment O) indicate Offerors are required to submit a QASP in Volume V for all awardable task orders and the non-awardable Task Order; however, the proposal instructions do not address the QASP requirement. Please clarify the QASP requirements.

L.7: If proposing for multiple domains, the vendor may submit 1 copy of the completed Attachment H, LCAT Pricing Template for all proposed domain LCAT ceiling rates in the first Volume V, however, please note in subsequent Volume V for other domains where the IDIQ LCAT ceiling rates (Attach H) is located.

L.7.2: Subcontractors/Teaming Partners may submit their pricing information directly to the government by the due date and must clearly identify the Prime's proposal so that it can be easily consolidated.

L.1: QASP requirements have been added to the solicitation.

Solicitation Section L - Instructions, Conditions and Notices to Offeror

Please clarify the Phase 2 Submission Requirements for the IDIQ provided in RFP Section L.1.16. Specifically, the examples provided do not align with Section L.1.12 instructions where one Small Business Participation Plan (SBPP) is submitted for all Domains proposed. To allow consistent Phase 2 Vol IV submissions, please include an example of a Phase 2 submission encompassing multiple domains.

L.1.16 tables have been revised for clarity.

Solicitation Section L - Instructions, Conditions and Notices to Offeror

Section L.1 (3) states that "Cover page, table of contents, display graphics, flow charts, organizational charts, or drawings, will not be counted towards the page limit for the technical or business volume." Please confirm that the cover pages, tables of contents, and the glossary are not counted towards the page limit for all volumes submitted against this procurement.

Cover page, table of contents, display graphics, flow charts, organizational charts, or drawings, will not be counted towards the page limit for the technical of business volume.

L - Instructions, Conditions and Notices to Offeror

Please confirm that since Section L.1(3) states graphics are not considered part of page count, whether every graphic should be inserted on it's own page or all graphics should be included as an Appendix to the Technical Approach Volume 3?

Please add graphics as appendices.

Solicitation Section L - Instructions, Conditions and Notices to Offeror

In L.1.7 The government provides requirements for a transmittal letter. Please confirm the transmittal letter is outside of page count.

Transmittal letters or reasonable length (no more than 3 pages) will not count towards the overall page limit.

Solicitation Section L - Instructions, Conditions and Notices to Offeror

We respectfully request a one-week extension to the Phase 1 submission to ensure that Offerors have adequate time to develop the required content.

HRSA appreciates your question and/or feedback. However, the proposal due dates for Phase 1 and 2 remain unchanged.

Solicitation Section L - Instructions, Conditions and Notices to Offeror

L.1.3. In answers to questions released May 2, 2024, the government repeated provided the response: "Section L.1.4 has been revised to read, “Cover page, table of contents, display graphics, flow charts, organizational charts, or drawings, will not be counted towards the page limit for the technical of business volume”." The updated Final RFP section is now "L.1.3" (not L.1.4), and L.1.3 still contains what appears to be a typo: "technical *of* business". Please confirm L.1.3 should read "technical or business."

L.1.3 has been revised to clarify items that will not count towards the Technical OR Business Proposals.

Solicitation Section L - Instructions, Conditions and Notices to Offeror

We respectfully request an extension to the Phase 2 submission to ensure that Offerors have adequate time to develop the required content after the down-select.

HRSA appreciates your question and/or feedback. However, the proposal due dates for Phase 1 and 2 remain unchanged.

Solicitation Section L - Instructions, Conditions and Notices to Offeror

Regarding answer to question #458, the government answered: "Offerors shall not modify Attachment H - LCAT Pricing Template or any tables within the Final RFP when preparing proposal submissions."As this contradicts guidance regarding other parts of the Final RFP (example, removing italicized information in Att. G prior to submittal). Please confirm this response excludes Attachment G.

This excludes Attachment G.

Solicitation Section L - Instructions, Conditions and Notices to Offeror

Please confirm in which volume Attachment C should be included. Please include Attachment C in Volume II.

Solicitation Section L - Instructions, Conditions and Notices to Offeror

L.1.8 As exceptions are required in the Transmittal Letter AND in the relevant response section, please confirm that in Phase 1 responses, Offerors are required to provide exceptions specific to Phase 1.

Confirming that exceptions specific to Phase 1 should be included in Phase 1 submissions.

Solicitation Section L - Instructions, Conditions and Notices to Offeror

RFP_75R60224R00008_OPTN Operations.pdf - Pg# 64 Phase 2 - Submission Requirements for the IDIQ indicate "Volume V - Business Proposal (LCATS for Loaded & Unloaded Rates) and Cost or Pricing Data." Would the government please confirm that the LCAT (Domain X) tab in attachment H is where the government is expected to see this data?

Confirming that the LCAT Domain X tab in Attachment H is where the government expects to see the Domain-specific LCAT ceiling rates.

Solicitation Section L - Instructions, Conditions and Notices to Offeror

RFP L.1.16 Submission Requirements for Awardable Task Orders, Domain 3 (Attachment N), L.7.4, M.8.2, PWS Appendix C, Volume V – Section 508 VPAT and Section V, Schedule of Deliverables

Awardable Task Order for Domain 3, IT Discovery, consists of analysis and deliverables that are to be created under the task order with no associated proposed technical solution requirement. Will the government waive the VPAT requirement for this TO, or clarify how vendors should meet the requirement to provide a VPAT or Accessibility Conformance Report for ICT that does not yet exist?

Attachment N has been updated.

Solicitation Section L - Instructions, Conditions and Notices to Offeror

RFP_75R60224R00008_OPTN Operations.