Addendum B - QASP 5-20-21.docx

Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan For: Access to a publication that provides continuous coverage of labor and employment news and access to a publication that provides continuous coverage of occupational safety and health news Contract Number: < upon award, enter contract number> Contract Description: Access to a publication that provides continuous coverage of labor and employment news and access to a publication that provides continuous coverage of occupational safety and health news through a determined number of users on a vendor-provided platform Contractor’s name: < upon award, enter contractor name > (hereafter referred to as the contractor).

Purpose This Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP) provides a systematic method to evaluate performance for the stated contract. This QASP explains the following:

· What will be monitored?

· How monitoring will take place?

· Who will conduct the monitoring?

· How monitoring efforts and results will be documented?

This QASP does not detail how the contractor accomplishes the work. Rather, the QASP is created with the premise that the contractor is responsible for management and quality control actions to meet the terms of the contract. It is the Government’s responsibility to be objective, fair, and consistent in evaluating performance. In addition, the QASP should recognize that unforeseen and uncontrollable situations may occur.

This QASP is a “living document” and the Government may review and revise it on a regular basis. However, the Government shall coordinate changes with the contractor. Updates shall ensure that the QASP remains a valid, useful, and enforceable document. Copies of the original QASP and revisions shall be provided to the contractor and Government officials implementing surveillance activities.

The following FAR clause applies:

52.212-4 Inspection of Services – Fixed-Price Government Roles and Responsibilities The following personnel shall oversee and coordinate surveillance activities.

a. Contracting Officer (CO) - The CO shall ensure performance of all necessary actions for effective contracting, ensure compliance with the contract terms, and shall safeguard the interests of the United States in the contractual relationship. The CO shall also assure that the contractor receives impartial, fair, and equitable treatment under this contract. The CO is ultimately responsible for the final determination of the adequacy of the contractor’s performance.

Assigned CO: <enter name> Organization or Agency: <enter organization or Agency name> Telephone: <enter number> Email: <enter address>

b. Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) - The COR is responsible for technical administration of the contract and shall assure proper Government surveillance of the contractor’s performance. The COR shall keep a quality assurance file. At the conclusion of the contract or when requested by the CO, the COR shall provide documentation to the CO. The COR is not empowered to make any contractual commitments or to authorize any contractual changes on the Government’s behalf. The contractor shall refer any changes they deem may affect contract price, terms, or conditions to the CO for action.

Assigned COR: TBD Telephone:

Email:

c. Other Key Government Personnel - TBD Title:

Telephone:

Email:

Contractor Representatives The following employees of the contractor serve as the contractor’s Contract Manager and Task Manager for this contract. <Communication should occur with them during QASP development. It will help if they review the draft QASP and accept the final version.>

a. Contract Manager - <upon award, enter name> Telephone: <enter number> Email: <enter address>

b. Task Manager - <upon award, enter name> Telephone: <enter number> Email: <enter address>

c. Other Contractor Personnel - <upon award, enter name or delete these lines if not applicable> Title: <enter title> Telephone: <enter number> Email: <enter address>

Performance Standards Performance standards define desired services. The Government performs surveillance to determine if the contractor exceeds, meets or does not meet these standards.

The Performance Requirements Summary Matrix, page 9, in the Performance Work Statement includes performance standards. The Government shall use these standards to determine contractor performance and shall compare contractor performance to the Acceptable Quality Level (AQL).

Performance Objective (The Service required—usually a shall statement)

PRS # 1.

The contractor shall provide access to an existing, original, and continuously updated news publication that provides 24/7 coverage of a diverse range of local, state, regional, national, and global labor and employment topics including, but not limited to, legislative and regulatory labor news, labor market updates, relevant labor litigation, union proceedings, employment board proceedings, and other relevant general labor news for 500-700 users.

PRS # 2

The contractor shall provide access to an existing, original, and continuously updated news publication that provides 24/7 coverage of a diverse range of local, state, regional, national, and global occupational safety and health topics including, but not limited to, worker safety and health enforcement, regulations, and employer violations for 50-500 users.

PRS # 3

The contractor shall provide access to a benefits and executive compensation resource center that includes the latest news, expert legal analysis, reporting, casework, and research related to

· ERISA litigation and casework

· Healthcare

· Pension plans

· Retirement plans

· Benefit plans

· Multiple Employer Welfare Arrangements (MEWAs)

· Ongoing or historical litigation of benefits, retirement or other employee compensation

· Executive compensation

· Compliance tools

· Life insurance for 270-350 users.

PRS # 4

The contractor shall provide access to a health care practice research center that has resources on health care compliance and legal intelligence. The research center combines news, legal analysis, and primary sources in one site. It includes

· Health law reporter

· Health care daily report

· Health care policy report

· Medicare report

· Health insurance report

· Health care fraud report

· Health IT law and industry report

· Health law and business news

· Health law and business portfolios

· Health law books and treatises

· Health care program compliance guide

· Case collection with citator

· Federal and state laws and regulations

· Regulatory agency materials

· State chart builder

· Federal and state regulatory alerts

· State legislative alerts

· Health care checklists and forms for 10-20 users.

PRS # 5

The contractor shall provide access to a financial accounting resource center that includes

· Accounting policy and practice portfolios

· Accounting policy and practice reports

· U.S. GAAP navigation tool for 10-20 users and 4 concurrent users for industry-specific specialized materials.

PRS # 6

The contractor shall provide access to the vendor’s existing, original news publications and resource centers through a vendor-managed platform that is accessed by a determined number of user accounts at the start of each base/option year or increased number of users through a contract modification.

Methods of QA Surveillance Various methods exist to monitor performance. The COR shall use the surveillance methods listed below in the administration of this QASP.

Regardless of the surveillance method, the COR shall always contact the contractor's task manager or on-site representative when a defect is identified and inform the manager of the specifics of the problem. The COR, with assistance from the CO, shall be responsible for monitoring the contractor’s performance in meeting a specific performance standard/AQL.

DIRECT OBSERVATION. (Can be performed periodically or through 100% surveillance.)

· The contractor shall provide access to an existing, original, and continuously updated news publication that provides 24/7 coverage of a diverse range of local, state, regional, national, and global labor and employment topics including, but not limited to, legislative and regulatory labor news, labor market updates, relevant labor litigation, union proceedings, employment board proceedings, and other relevant general labor news.

· The contractor shall provide access to an existing, original, and continuously updated news publication that provides 24/7 coverage of a diverse range of local, state, regional, national, and global occupational safety and health topics including, but not limited to, worker safety and health enforcement, regulations, and employer violations.

· The contractor shall provide access to an existing, original, and continuously updated benefits and executive compensation resource center.

· The contractor shall provide access to an existing, original, and continuously updated health care practice research center.

· The contractor shall provide access to an existing, original, and continuously updated financial accounting resource center and to industry-specific specialized materials for concurrent users.

· The contractor shall provide access to the vendor’s existing, original news publications through a vendor-managed platform that is accessed by a determined number of user accounts at the start of each base/option year or increased number of users through a contract modification.

PERIODIC INSPECTION. (Uses a comprehensive evaluation of selected outputs. Inspections may be scheduled [Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Quarterly, or annually] or unscheduled, as required.)

· The contractor shall provide access to an existing, original, and continuously updated news publication that provides 24/7 coverage of a diverse range of local, state, regional, national, and global labor and employment topics including, but not limited to, legislative and regulatory labor news, labor market updates, relevant labor litigation, union proceedings, employment board proceedings, and other relevant general labor news.

· The contractor shall provide access to an existing, original, and continuously updated news publication that provides 24/7 coverage of a diverse range of local, state, regional, national, and global occupational safety and health topics including, but not limited to, worker safety and health enforcement, regulations, and employer violations.

· The contractor shall provide access to an existing, original, and continuously updated benefits and executive compensation resource center.

· The contractor shall provide access to an existing, original, and continuously updated health care practice research center.

· The contractor shall provide access to an existing, original, and continuously updated financial accounting resource center and to industry-specific specialized materials for concurrent users.

· The contractor shall provide access to the vendor’s existing, original news publications through a vendor-managed platform that is accessed by a determined number of user accounts at the start of each base/option year or increased number of users through a contract modification.

VALIDATED USER/CUSTOMER COMPLAINTS. (Relies on the user of the service to identify deficiencies. Complaints are then investigated and validated. Highly applicable to services provided in quantity and where quality is highly subjective.)

· The contractor shall provide access to an existing, original, and continuously updated news publication that provides 24/7 coverage of a diverse range of local, state, regional, national, and global labor and employment topics including, but not limited to, legislative and regulatory labor news, labor market updates, relevant labor litigation, union proceedings, employment board proceedings, and other relevant general labor news.

· The contractor shall provide access to an existing, original, and continuously updated news publication that provides 24/7 coverage of a diverse range of local, state, regional, national, and global occupational safety and health topics including, but not limited to, worker safety and health enforcement, regulations, and employer violations.

· The contractor shall provide access to an existing, original, and continuously updated benefits and executive compensation resource center.

· The contractor shall provide access to an existing, original, and continuously updated health care practice research center.

· The contractor shall provide access to an existing, original, and continuously updated financial accounting resource center and to industry-specific specialized materials for concurrent users.

· The contractor shall provide access to the vendor’s existing, original news publications through a vendor-managed platform that is accessed by a determined number of user accounts at the start of each base/option year or increased number of users through a contract modification.

Ratings Metrics and methods are designed to determine if performance exceeds, meets, or does not meet a given standard and acceptable quality level. A rating scale shall be used to determine a positive, neutral, or negative outcome. The following ratings shall be used:

Documenting Performance

a. ACCEPTABLE PERFORMANCE The Government shall document positive performance. A report template is attached. Any report may become a part of the supporting documentation for fixed fee payments, award fee payments, or other actions.

b. UNACCEPTABLE PERFORMANCE.

When unacceptable performance occurs, the COR shall inform the contractor. This will normally be in writing unless circumstances necessitate verbal communication. In any case the COR shall document the discussion and place it in the COR file.

When the COR determines formal written communication is required, the COR shall prepare a Contract Discrepancy Report (CDR), and present it to the contractor's task manager or on-site representative. A CDR template is attached to this QASP.

The contractor shall acknowledge receipt of the CDR in writing. The CDR will specify if the contractor is required to prepare a corrective action plan to document how the contractor shall correct the unacceptable performance and avoid a recurrence. The CDR will also state how long after receipt the contractor has to present this corrective action plan to the COR. The Government shall review the contractor's corrective action plan to determine acceptability.

Any CDRs may become a part of the supporting documentation for contract payment deductions, fixed fee deductions, award fee nonpayment, or other actions deemed necessary by the CO.

Frequency of Measurement

a. FREQUENCY OF MEASUREMENT.

During contract/order performance, the COR shall take periodic measurements, monthly, as specified in the AQL column of the Performance Standards Summary Matrix, and shall analyze whether the negotiated frequency of measurement is appropriate for the work being performed.

b. FREQUENCY OF PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT MEETINGS.

The COR shall meet with the contractor as requested to assess performance and shall provide a written assessment.

Prepared by:

Signature – Contracting Officer’s Representative

Performance Report

1. CONTRACT NUMBER: <insert number>

2. Prepared by: (Name of COR) <insert name>

3. Date and time of observation:

4. Observation:

<Examples of items to include in a report are:

- Method of surveillance.

- How frequently you conducted surveillance.

- Surveillance results.

- Number of observations.>s

Prepared by: <Enter COR’s name>

QUALITY ASSURANCE SURVEILLANCE PLAN