CHIPRA 1129.doc

CHIPRA Coordinating and Technical Assistance Center RFP Questions and Answers (Answers as of 11/29/10)

1. On page 76, the RFP states that past performance questionnaires and contractor performance forms shall be completed by the contracting organizations identified in #1 on page 75 (to the last five contracts completed and all contracts that are currently in process). Please clarify how many past performance questionnaires should be completed and returned to AHRQ?

Answer: Past performance questionnaires should be completed by organizations that you held a contract or subcontract with in the last 5 years. It is up to the individual offer to determine the appropriate number of questionnaires necessary to demonstrate their past performance.

2. Page 1 of the RFP states that, “…organizations that review and endorse measures have been identified as having a significant Organizational Conflict of Interest (reference FAR subpart 9.5). Does this include affiliations of expert participants in the February 2010 Pediatric Health Care Quality Measures Program: Measure Criteria Expert Meeting?

Answer: No.

3. Section C, Part A of the RFP (top of p. 9) refers to three of the ten grantee States that will be developing and testing new measures. Which States are these and is there information available concerning the current status of this process?

Answer: Specific information about which States will be participating in the Pediatric Quality Measure Program is not yet available. General information about the CHIPRA Quality Demonstration Grants can be found at http://www.insurekidsnow.gov/professionals/CHIPRA/grants_summary.html.

4. In the description of Task 5 on p. 17 of the RFP, reference is made to coordinating with AHRQ’s OCKT concerning interfacing with AHRQ’s system. What is the nature of the interface for web queries and FAQs described in the fourth bullet in this section?

Answer: AHRQ uses the Government hosting environment of RightNow Technologies as the back-end customer relationship management system for Web inquiries. The interface involves implementing code for an AHRQ-branded landing page from Web resources, providing relevant content for frequently asked questions in the knowledge base, and coordinating with AHRQ agents on responses to related inquiries that are referred for technical assistance and feedback.

5. The final bullet on p. 17 (Task 5) refers to Web inventory data and metrics reporting. Will OCKT gather this data through its own tools or will this be the responsibility of the contractor?

Answer: This is usually a combined effort depending on where a Web resource is hosted and whether it is deployed within or outside of an AHRQ enterprise environment. AHRQ maintains an enterprise license for Web Trends for metrics for those Web resources hosted internally. If a site is deployed on an external server, then the technical support staff would be responsible for obtaining and reporting annual usage and statistics required for that domain.

6. The description of Task 8 (pp. 20, 21) refers to the “modified Delphi process" used by the AHRQ National Advisory Council’s SNAC. Can AHRQ make documentation which describes the modified Delphi process the subcommittee used available to offerors?

Answer: Information about the modified Delphi process used by the AHRQ National Advisory Council’s SNAC can be found at http://www.ahrq.gov/chipra.

7. Concerning invitees to the annual meeting of experts (Task 4.1 on p. 74 of the RFP), is there any restriction on members of the expert committee for the initial core set of measures also participating in these meetings of experts?

Answer: No.

8. Section K.1 (page 51) refers to the NAICS for this solicitation, but it has been left blank. What is the NAICS for this procurement?

Answer: NAICS # is 541611.

9. RFP Section K.1 (a) (1) (page 51) includes a placeholder for the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code that applies to this acquisition. Can the Government please specify the NAICS code that applies?

Answer: Please see the answer to Question 8.

10. RFP Section L.3 (d) (page 66) refers to offer expiration date as being specified on the solicitation cover sheet. In the absence of a solicitation cover sheet, please confirm whether a 90 day proposal validity period would be sufficient.

Answer: A 120 day proposal validity period would be more appropriate for this requirement.

11. RFP Section L.9 requires one original, twelve hard copies plus two electronic CD copies of the technical proposal. Section L.12 requires one original, five hard copies and two CD copies of the business proposal. Sections L.10 and L.11 do not list a requirement to provide CD copies of the past performance information or small disadvantaged business participation plan. Please confirm that this is the case and only one original and five copies of the past performance information and only one original and two copies of the small disadvantaged business participation plan is needed (without CDs or any other electronic submission).

Answer: CD’s are NOT required for Past Performance or the Small Disadvantage Business Participation Plan.

12. RFP Section L.12 (A) (page 78) requires that the price proposal include a copy of the bidder’s most recent payroll register for all proposed employees. Please confirm that this requirement would be met by providing current annual salary information for each proposed employee, coupled with full methodology for translating salary information into direct labor rates.

Answer: The only acceptable documentation is a copy of the Payroll Register.

13. RFP Section C, Task 4 (page 15) states “In year 1, the contractor shall cover travel expenses for the CHIPRA COE awardees.” Is the contractor responsible for the travel expenses for all experts invited to the meeting in year 1? For cost estimation purposes, what number of participants should be assumed? What level of stipend should be assumed (in addition to travel expenses) for the experts? Will these expenses be reimbursed by the AHRQ for future meetings?

Answer: The contractor will be responsible for the travel expenses for all the experts in each of the 4 years. We estimate the number of experts to be no more than 15. For year 1 only, the contractor will be additionally responsible for travel for 9 CHIPRA COE awardees to one meeting. (These awards have not been made yet.) Honoraria for participating experts are an allowable cost. An amount such as $200 for each day of the meeting is reasonable.

14. Will AHRQ have nominations from specific groups that they would like to include for the panel of experts? In particular, a representative from the National Association of Medicaid Director's, the American Academy of Pediatrics and/or the National Quality Forum? It is stated in the RFP that the NQF is to have a role in additional measure development.

Answer: Please refer to the first paragraph under Task 4 (p. 15 of the RFP) for broad guidelines about the types of groups we expect to be represented at the expert meetings.

15. Since the measures implemented at this point are voluntary does AHRQ and/or CMS intend for these measures to be mandatory in the future?

Answer: No.

16. Could you please provide information regarding the Centers of Excellence that have been awarded and which States are part of the CMS funded quality demonstration grants?

Answer: The CMS quality demonstration grants are different from the CHIPRA Pediatric Quality Measures Program COE cooperative agreements. The Centers of Excellence cooperative agreements have not yet been awarded. Please also see the answer to Question 3.

17. Can you please clarify who would be the steward of the quality measures? Will this be the grantee, AHRQ or CMS?

Answer: Stewardship arrangements have not yet been determined.

18. Will the NQF endorsement process be handled by each grantee or will this be the responsibility of the contractor under this award?

Answer: Preparation for NQF endorsement will be the responsibility of the measure developers, not the contractor.

19. Could you provide an estimate of the overall level of effort for the base and each of the option years?

Answer: No. Proposals should be based on the Scope of Work described in the RFP.

20. Under task 2, the RFP states that the Kick-off meeting “shall occur at AHRQ over the course of 2 days. The contractor shall send all key personnel and any other relevant personnel to participate in this kick-off meeting” Are the travel costs for the COEs and Grantee States to be included under this contract or are these costs covered by each individual grant? Is the meeting to take place at AHRQ’s office in Rockville, MD or should we assume any costs for another location in the DC area?

Answer: For the kick-off meeting, the contractor will be responsible only for sending its own personnel. The meeting will take place at AHRQ headquarters in Rockville, MD. Please see question 13 for other issues related to travel costs in Year 1.

21. Can you provide an estimate for the level of effort for the technical assistance for grantees/COEs for the base and each option year?

Answer: The only guidance the Government can provide regarding level of effort is shown in the answer to Question 19.

22. Under subtask 3.2 the RFP requests an example of the quarterly report. Can this be included as an Appendix or does it have to be included within the 30 page limit?

Answer: The example quarterly report may be included as an Appendix.

23. Regarding experts to be included as part of this program, should we include any honoraria for experts that are not Government representatives or members of the COEs and Grantee States? Does AHRQ have an estimate on the number of experts that should be included under this contract and the amount it considers appropriate as honoraria?

Answer: Please see the answer to Question 13.

24. Task 4 states that “In year 1, the contractor shall cover travel expenses for the CHIPRA COE awardees” for the annual expert meetings. Is this cost only applicable to year 1 or should we also include for the 3 option years? Can you provide the number of people expected to attend from the COEs/Grantee States? For budget purposes, how many days should we assume for the meeting?

Answer: Please see the answer to Question 13. We expect the annual expert meeting to occur over the course of 2 days. In 2011, because of timing, we expect the contractor to pay for the COEs to travel to the annual expert meeting rather than to the kickoff meeting. COEs will pay for their own travel to the kickoff meeting rather than the expert meeting in September.

25. Task 5 “Web-based environment” – The RFP encourages the use of HHS’ or AHRQ’s existing enterprise licenses. It also states that “enterprise licensing agreements are between the Agency and the vendor and therefore, contractors cannot sign agreements on behalf of AHRQ”. Should the contractor assume that all licensing fees are to be covered by HHS/AHRQ and not under this contract?

Answer: Although the enterprise licenses are entered into and managed by AHRQ Office of the Director IT, there are costs associated with additional usage and capacity for existing services and/or new solutions. Associated costs should be estimated and included in proposals because a cost-benefit analysis is needed to make decisions on potential solutions or expanded coverage. Funds from the contract award may need to be applied to implement and/or reimburse for these services.

26. Under Task 7, the RFP highlights a number of footnotes, but these are not included in the RFP, can you please provide the appropriate information/links (this relates to footnotes 5, 6 and 7 on page 19) Answer: Please see http://www.ahrq.gov/chipra/corebackgrnd.htm for the requested information.

27. Under Past Performance the RFP mentions “the last 5 contracts completed during the past three years”. Can you clarify if this means at least five contracts relevant to this SOW? Can current contracts that are relevant to the scope of work be included within these 5 contracts? For severable contracts that have option years, can we assume that the base year is considered as a completed contract for past performance purposes? We assume that the 5 include both prime and any subcontractors, is that correct?

Answer: Please see the answer to Question 1. Yes, contractor should provide past performance on five contracts which are relevant to this SOW. Yes, an option year under a severable contract is acceptable. Yes, the 5 contracts include both prime and subcontracts.

28. Under Past Performance, the RFP requests “all contracts and subcontracts in process”. Can you clarify that this relates to all contracts relevant to this SOW?

Answer: Please see the answer to Question 1.

29. Under Section L 10 the RFP requests “Past Performance Questionnaire and Contractor Performance Form (Attachment 1) shall be completed by those contracting organizations listed in (1) above” We assume that this refers to selecting a subset of contracts or is it specifically addressed to the 5 contracts provided.

Answer: Please see the answer to Question 1.

30. Please advise as to the start date of the period of performance for pricing purposes.

Answer: We are planning to award this contract at the end of March 2011.

31. The RFP on page 9 indicates that CMS has awarded quality demonstration grants to ten states, three of which will be developing and testing new measures related to children’s health. Please identify the three states that will be developing and testing new measures.

Answer: Please see the answer to Question 3.

32. The RFP on page 82 speaks to conflict of interest. Please clarify whether any of the following situations would constitute a conflict of interest:

a. An individual within a consulting company is working with one of the three grantee states related to measure development. Would that individual be permitted to bid on this RFP?

Answer: Yes

b. If the answer is “no” to the first question, would this prohibition extend to other individuals within the consulting company who are NOT involved in work with the grantee state?

c. Would your response to either of these situations be different if either the individual or the consulting company were to be included as a subcontractor on a proposal from another prime contractor?

Answer: No.

33. The RFP on page 82 speaks to conflict of interest. Please clarify whether any of the following situations would constitute a conflict of interest:

a. An individual within a consulting company is working with one of the Centers of Excellence (COE). Would that individual be permitted to bid on this RFP?

Answer: Yes

b. If the answer is “no” to the first question, would this prohibition extend to other individuals within the consulting company who are NOT involved in work with the COE?

c. Would your response to either of these situations be different if either the individual or the consulting company were to be included as a subcontractor on a proposal from another prime contractor?

Answer: No.

34. What is the approximate dollar value of this contract? General.

Answer: Please see the answer to Question 19.

35. “The term “CMS Technical Assistance Contractor” shall refer to CMS’ own contractor serving the CMS quality demonstration grantees, which is a separate program from the PQMP.” Can you elaborate on the differences in the roles of the CMS Technical Assistance Contractor and the CHIPRA Coordinating and Technical Assistance Center? Page 9 B. second paragraph.

Answer: CMS has not announced plans for its technical assistance contractor. Please also see the answer to Question 3.

36. Will the CCTAC contractor be required to align with the NQF criteria or will they be allowed to come up with additional criteria independent of NQF? Page 10, #4

(Pages 70-72, Sections L.8 and L.9) Does AHRQ have a “top twenty” list of pediatric maternal/child health conditions they want addressed by new measures if a measurement gap is identified? Page 9, last paragraph.

Answer: As noted in the RFP, the CCTAC contractor will be working with AHRQ to build upon certain relevant NQF criteria as well as CHIPRA criteria so that the new and enhanced measures being developed by the PQMP will meet the CHIPRA requirements. The priorities for work by the PQMP will be set by HHS and informed by public input. AHRQ has not sought this public input yet.

37. For purposes of packaging and shipping, is it permissible to bind and package the four sections separately and then ship them in one container? Pages 70-72, Sections L.8 and L.9 Answer: Yes.

38. Does the Table in Section B.2.d need to be completed and included in the Business Proposal? If this table is to be included, where in the Business Proposal should this be placed? Page 6, Section B.2, and Page 77, Section L.12 Answer: No. This information will be completed at time of award.

39. Is the Offeror required to submit a budget narrative in the Business Proposal? Page 77, Section L.12.

Answer: Yes, offerors should submit a budget narrative to accompany their cost proposal.

40. Is the Offeror required to submit a Certificate of Current Costs or Pricing Data in the Business Proposal? Page 77 Section L.12.

Answer: No.

41. Are there any restrictions on who can be involved with this contract as partners either as subcontractors or consultants?

Answer: No.

For, example, would anyone involved in the initial list of measures be disqualified?

Answer: No.

Would involvement in other AHRQ or CMS work disqualify individuals or organizations? If yes, who would be disqualified from participation?

Answer: No.

42. Which of the 3 out of the 10 states with the CHIPRA grants will be involved in the project?

Answer: Please see the answer to Question 3.

43. Who are the Centers of Excellence sites?

Answer: The Centers of Excellence cooperative agreements have not yet been awarded.

44. Should the business proposal include a budget for the first year only, or the first year and all 3 option years?

Answer: Business proposal should include a budget for all years including all option periods of the Contract.

45. Subtask 1.3 refers to semimonthly conferences with the COTR that are “web conferences.” Should the contractor budget to host a web-based meeting semi-monthly, or should the budget include costs for conference call lines only?

Answer: The semimonthly conferences with the COTR will be teleconferences only. The monthly conferences with the COEs/Grantee States (Subtask 3.1) will be web conferences.

46. Under Task 2, should the contractor budget for the costs of preparing the agenda, materials and/or any logistics for the kick-off meeting?

Answer: No.

47. Under Task 4, should the contractor budget for travel expenses and/or honoraria for the invited experts?

Answer: Please see the answer to Question 23.

48. Under Task 4, should the contractor budget for the travel expenses of the CHIPRA Demonstration grantees, and if so, how many people per grantee?

Answer: No.

49. Under Task 4, how many COE awardees should we assume will be attending the meeting in Year 1? How many people should we assume will attend for each COE awardee, for the purpose of budgeting travel expenses?

Answer: We expect to have 7 – 9 COEs, each of whom will send 1 representative to each annual meeting.

50. How many experts would be invited to the public meeting described under Task 4?

Answer: Please see the answer to Question 23.

51. In the RFP on page 75, in Section (L.10) (1), the instructions for Past Performance Information states that the Offeror is to “provide a list of the last five (5) contracts and subcontracts completed during the past three years, and all current contracts and subcontracts currently in process.” Then (L.10) (4) states that “the attached Performance Questionnaire and Contractor Performance Form (Attachment 1) shall be completed by those contracting organizations listed in (1) above.” Given that the total number of completed and current contracts could be numerous; would the government consider having the Offeror submit evaluation questionnaires for only the five (5) completed contracts rather than for all contracts?

Answer: Please see the answer to Question 1.

52. In the RFP on page 75, in Section (L.10) the first sentence states that the information listed below is required for both the Offeror and proposed major subcontractors. Then (L.10) (4) specifies the Offeror. Please clarify whether subcontractors are also required to send questionnaires, as specified on page 76 (L.10) (4).

Answer: Yes, Subcontractors are should send questionnaires also.