AMENDMENT ONE.docx

State of South Carolina

Request for Proposal

AMENDMENT ONE

Solicitation:

Date Issued:

Procurement Officer:

Phone:

E-Mail Address:

Mailing Address:

5400023515 08/08/2022 LISA ROLAND Lisa Roland 803-898-0533 ROLANDLD@dhec.sc.gov

SC DHEC

Attn: Procurement Services Division 301 Gervais Street, 4th Floor Columbia SC 29201-3073

DESCRIPTION: Turnkey COVID-19 Testing Services for all SC Schools

USING GOVERNMENTAL UNIT: SC Dept of Health & Environmental Control

The Term "Offer" Means Your "Bid" or "Proposal". Your offer must be submitted in a sealed package. Solicitation Number & Opening Date must appear on package exterior. See "Submitting Your Paper Offer or Modification" provision.

SUBMIT YOUR OFFER ON-LINE AT THE FOLLOWING URL: http://www.procurement.sc.gov (See Pages 3 through 5 for Instructions)

SUBMIT OFFER BY (Opening Date/Time): 08/16/2022 08/30/2022- 2:30PM ET (See "Deadline for Submission of Offer" provision)

QUESTIONS MUST BE RECEIVED BY: 07/21/2022- 5:00 PM ET DATE HAS PASSED (See "Questions from Offerors" provision)

NUMBER OF COPIES TO BE SUBMITTED: **See Pages 3 - 4**

CONFERENCE TYPE: Pre-Proposal

DATE & TIME: 07/21/22 @ 10:00 AM ET DATE HAS PASSED

(As appropriate, see "Conferences - Pre-Bid/Proposal" & "Site Visit" provisions) LOCATION: Virtual Contact the Procurement Officer for Access

You must submit a signed copy of this form with Your Offer. By signing, you agree to be bound by the terms of the Solicitation. You agree to hold Your Offer open for a minimum of thirty (30) calendar days after the Opening Date. (See "Signing Your Offer" provision.)

NAME OF OFFEROR

(full legal name of business submitting the offer) Any award issued will be issued to, and the contract will be formed with, the entity identified as the Offeror. The entity named as the offeror must be a single and distinct legal entity. Do not use the name of a branch office or a division of a larger entity if the branch or division is not a separate legal entity, i.e., a separate corporation, partnership, sole proprietorship, etc.

AUTHORIZED SIGNATURE

(Person must be authorized to submit binding offer to contract on behalf of Offeror.)

DATE SIGNED

TITLE

(business title of person signing above)

STATE VENDOR NO.

(Register to Obtain S.C. Vendor No. at www.procurement.sc.gov)

PRINTED NAME

(printed name of person signing above)

STATE OF INCORPORATION

(If you are a corporation, identify the state of incorporation.)

OFFEROR'S TYPE OF ENTITY: (Check one) (See "Signing Your Offer" provision.)

___ Sole Proprietorship ___ Partnership ___ Other_____________________________

___ Corporate entity (not tax-exempt) ___ Corporation (tax-exempt) ___ Government entity (federal, state, or local)

COVER PAGE - PAPER ONLY (MAR. 2015)

SAP

SAP

PAGE TWO

(Return Page Two with Your Offer) HOME OFFICE ADDRESS (Address for offeror's home office / principal place of business)

NOTICE ADDRESS (Address to which all procurement and contract related notices should be sent.) (See "Notice" clause)

Area Code - Number - Extension Facsimile

E-mail Address

PAYMENT ADDRESS (Address to which payments will be sent.) (See "Payment" clause)

____Payment Address same as Home Office Address ____Payment Address same as Notice Address (check only one) ORDER ADDRESS (Address to which purchase orders will be sent) (See "Purchase Orders and "Contract Documents" clauses)

____Order Address same as Home Office Address ____Order Address same as Notice Address (check only one)

ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF AMENDMENTS

Offerors acknowledges receipt of amendments by indicating amendment number and its date of issue. (See "Amendments to Solicitation" Provision)

DISCOUNT FOR PROMPT PAYMENT

(See "Discount for Prompt Payment" clause)

PREFERENCES - A NOTICE TO VENDORS (SEP. 2009): On June 16, 2009, the South Carolina General Assembly rewrote the law governing preferences available to in-state vendors, vendors using in-state subcontractors, and vendors selling in-state or US end products. This law appears in Section 11-35-1524 of the South Carolina Code of Laws. A summary of the new preferences is available at www.procurement.sc.gov/preferences

Preferences do not apply per South Carolina Consolidated Procurement Code Section 11-35-1524, Part (E)(5).

PREFERENCES - ADDRESS AND PHONE OF IN-STATE OFFICE: Please provide the address and phone number for your in-state office in the space provided below. An in-state office is necessary to claim either the Resident Vendor Preference (11-35-1524(C)(1)(i)&(ii)) or the Resident Contractor Preference (11-35-1524(C)(1)(iii)). Accordingly, you must provide this information to qualify for the preference. An in-state office is not required, but can be beneficial, if you are claiming the Resident Subcontractor Preference (11-35-1524(D)).

Preferences do not apply per South Carolina Consolidated Procurement Code Section 11-35-1524, Part (E)(5).

____In-State Office Address same as Home Office Address ____In-State Office Address same as Notice Address (check only one)

PAGE TWO (SEP 2009)

End of PAGE TWO

AMENDMENT ONE

Solicitation No. 5400023515

DESCRIPTION: Turnkey COVID-19 Testing Services for all SC Schools

AMENDMENTS TO SOLICITION (JAN 2004)

(a) The Solicitation may be amended at any time prior to opening. All actual and prospective Offerors should monitor the following web site for the issuance of Amendments: www.procurement.sc.gov (b) Offerors shall acknowledge receipt of any amendment to this solicitation (1) by signing and returning the amendment, (2) by identifying the amendment number and date in the space provided for this purpose on Page Two, (3) by letter, or (4) by submitting a bid that indicates in some way that the bidder received the amendment. (c) If this solicitation is amended, then all terms and conditions which are not modified remain unchanged. [02-2A005-1]

QUESTIONS FROM OFFERORS – AMENDMENT (JUN 2017)

This solicitation is amended as provided herein, information or changes resulting from questions will be shown in a question–and-answer format. All questions received have been reprinted below. The “State’s Response” should be read without reference to the questions. The questions are included solely to provide a cross-reference to the potential offeror that submitted the question. Questions do not form a part of the contract; the “State’s Response” does. Any restatement of part or all of existing provision of the solicitation in an answer does not modify the original provision except as follows: underlined text is added to the original provision. Stricken text is deleted. [02-2A097-1]

**EXTEND BID OPENING: FROM: 08/16/2022 TO 08/30/2022- 2:30PM ET **

**EXTEND AWARD POSTING: FROM: 09/08/2022 TO 09/22/2022**

The following prospective offeror questions and agency responses are hereby incorporated into the solicitation.

VENDOR QUESTION 1: How does SCDHEC expect reporting of “distributed” OTC tests to be accomplished? For instance, will individuals take the test kits away from the contractor’s specimen collection site, test on their own and send results in a pre-determined way?

Must these tests include electronic reading and reporting functionality?

Must these tests be monitored by the laboratory in person or remotely?

Considering these potential requirements, is there a specific make/model of test that SCDHEC requires?

STATE’S RESPONSE: OTC antigen tests distributed for at-home use will not be monitored by contractor personnel in person or remotely. Please refer to Section III. Scope of Work/Specifications of the solicitation document – DHEC Result Reporting 3.2.1. At this time at-home OTC antigen test results are not required to be reported by HHS or DHEC guidance and will not be sent to the contractor. Quantities of OTC tests distributed per event and to whom they were distributed may be required by the school district for informational purposes.

Please refer to Section III. Scope of Work/Specifications of the solicitation document – Compensation 3.3.1.6 which states that number of tests performed or distributed per type at each event required to be reported on invoices and corresponding data back-ups.

Please refer to Section III. Scope of Work/Specifications of the solicitation document – 3.1.2. which states that all specimens will be collected with EUA authorized or FDA approved anterior nares or saliva-based tests provided by the contractor.

Please refer to Section III. Scope of Work/Specifications of the solicitation document – 3.1.1 which states that cross-panel tests including Flu A/B and Covid-19 are preferred. Cross-panel tests are not required.

SCDHEC does not require that tests include electronic reading and reporting functionality and does not require a specific make/model of test.

VENDOR QUESTION 2: Please further explain the requirement in Section 3, Cost to “Outline all costs to be incurred for the services requested in the solicitation. Offeror is to provide a thorough and detailed presentation of all costs to be incurred by the State during the contract performance.” Section VIII, Bidding Schedule / Price-Business Proposal doesn’t seem to have a place for this. Also, the solicitation states that the contractor has to bear all costs, so is it possible this requirement might not have been intended?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Disregard the language below which has been stricken from Section IV, 3. Cost. Outline all costs to be incurred for the services requested in the solicitation. Offeror is to provide a thorough and detailed presentation of all costs to be incurred by the State during the contract performance. The Price Proposal shall be submitted as a separate document. See Section VIII – Bidding Schedule/Price-Business Proposal. [04-4005-1]. The price shall be an all-inclusive testing cost per test.

VENDOR QUESTION 3: Section VII, Terms and Conditions, A. General, Payment and Interest (Page 27) doesn’t include payment terms. Will payments be delivered net 15 or net 30 days from the date of invoices for instance?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Net 30.

VENDOR QUESTION 4: Is it a requirement that the contractor be a qualified laboratory, or are non-laboratories allowed to propose as the prime contractor?

STATE’S RESPONSE: It is not required that the contractor be a qualified laboratory. Non-laboratories may propose as the prime contractor. It is required that contractors are currently licensed to do business in the state of South Carolina, that contractors or subcontractors have and maintain appropriate CLIA certification, have a minimum of 6 months experience offering COVID-19 diagnostic testing, and have performed a minimum of at least 25,000 COVID-19 diagnostic tests. Please refer to Section IV. Information for Offerors to Submit 2. Qualifications and Experience of the solicitation document for additional requirements.

VENDOR QUESTION 5: Who is the current or past vendor?

STATE’S RESPONSE: The current vendors are: Mako Medical Laboratories, Ambulnz, Patriot Medical Laboratories, and Tempus Labs.

VENDOR QUESTION 6: What is the current or past pricing?

STATE’S RESPONSE: This information may be requested through the Freedom of Information office by submitting a FOIA request to FOI@dhec.sc.gov

VENDOR QUESTION 7: What deficiencies have been identified with current or past vendor?

STATE’S RESPONSE: This information is not available.

VENDOR QUESTION 8: What deficiencies have been identified with current or past program?

STATE’S RESPONSE: This information is not available.

VENDOR QUESTION 9: What is the state’s preferred cross-panel test?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Please refer to Section III. Scope of Work/Specifications of the solicitation document – 3.1.1 and 3.1.2 which state that cross-panel tests including Flu A/B and Covid-19 are preferred but not required and that all specimens will be collected with EUA authorized or FDA approved anterior nares or saliva-based tests provided by the contractor.

Outside of these requirements, DHEC does not prefer a specific make/model of test.

VENDOR QUESTION 10: What is the expected volume per week?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Due to the nature of the pandemic and variability of requests received from charter schools and districts, DHEC will not be able to forecast expected weekly volume. During the 2021-2022 school year, charter schools and districts requested daily or weekly testing at one or more locations based on their organizational and community needs. The majority of test events qualified as “small events” with a range of 0-75 tests performed per event. However, as many as 350 tests were performed at a single event and vendors should have the capability to perform several hundred tests if needed. Across the state there were 220 vendor testing events that took place at school locations during the week of February 29-March 6, 2022, and 215 vendor testing events during the week of March 7-13, 2022.

VENDOR QUESTION 11: What is the testing protocol?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Please refer to Section III. Scope of Work/Specifications and Section IV. Information for Offerors to Submit of the solicitation document.

Testing requirements include collecting specimens with EUA authorized or FDA approved anterior nares or saliva-based tests, labeling samples and collecting patient demographic information in compliance with CLIA, CDC and other public health reporting requirements, and reporting all test results for tests that are performed by staff as required by HHS and DHEC guidance to DHEC within 24 hours. The contractor will also provide physician’s order for COVID-19 sample collection for the purposes of diagnostic and routine asymptomatic COVID-19 testing (screening), sufficiently trained medical personnel with appropriate background checks to staff and supervise collection sites at various locations around the state of South Carolina, capabilities to obtain personal protective equipment (PPE), tents, tables, coolers, and other necessary supplies to operate sample collection sites, at the contractor’s expense, materials and process for collecting and disposing of infectious/ medical waste according to state regulations, among other requirements.

VENDOR QUESTION 12: Is this a task order (need-based) type contract that is presented to each awarded vendor for bidding?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Each awarded contractor will be assigned locations based on requests received by charter schools and districts. In this sense work will be need-based. There will be no additional bidding process after contracts are awarded.

VENDOR QUESTION 13: Will only symptomatic participants be tested?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Contractors will work out details of the testing plan with the charter schools and districts that they are partnered with. Please refer to Section III. Scope of Work/Specifications of the solicitation document – 3.1.1 and 3.1.4. Diagnostic testing of school students and staff with symptoms or known COVID-19 exposure, routine asymptomatic COVID-19 testing (screening) of school students and staff, and testing household contacts of school students or staff that are symptomatic or have tested positive is allowable.

VENDOR QUESTION 14: Will the primary antigen test be COVID only and only those that test positive then need to receive a cross-panel test, or will all testing need to be Cross-panel?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Please refer to Section III. Scope of Work/Specifications of the solicitation document – 3.1.1 which states that cross-panel tests including Flu A/B and Covid-19 are preferred. Cross-panel tests are not required. It is preferred that the primary antigen test used be a cross-panel test. If a COVID-19 antigen test is used, there will be no need for follow-up with a cross-panel test.

VENDOR QUESTION 15: Please provide a list of the Regions that were reference on the pre-bid conference call

STATE’S RESPONSE: DHEC South Carolina Public Health Regions are: Upstate, Midlands, Pee Dee and Lowcountry. Please click link for map.

VENDOR QUESTION 16: Given the DHEC will provide location and frequency to the contractor, will testing sites be in each school in a district, or is it expected there will be a central testing location for each district?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Contractors will work out details of the testing plan with the charter schools and districts that they are partnered with. During the 2021-2022 school year, charter schools and districts requested daily or weekly testing at one or more locations based on their organizational and community needs. Many school districts requested testing sites at more than one location. A few school districts that requested testing sites at each school in their district requested to transition to one testing site at a central location during school breaks or in response to low Covid-19 community levels.

VENDOR QUESTION 17: Will the Contractor be responsible for setting up the semi-permanent testing sites? If so, would this be in existing buildings?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Yes, the contractor will be responsible for setting up all testing sites and providing all materials necessary for turnkey testing including appropriate shelter for staff during testing operations. It is not expected that schools will provide building space for contractor use.

VENDOR QUESTION 18: Will each district need to approve the consent form individually?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Each district will review the consent form and may request changes if deemed necessary by administration and their legal team.

STATE’S RESPONSE: All tests will be antigen; the contractor will not perform any PCR testing.

VENDOR QUESTION 21: Are we able to submit ONLY for the COVID-19 rapid antigen test products and not any of the testing services?

STATE’S RESPONSE: All testing sites will provide both OTC antigen test distribution and turnkey POC antigen testing concurrently at all events.

VENDOR QUESTION 22: Are there any priority populations/communities for this testing program? If so, what are the populations and what barriers are they experiencing to accessing care today?

STATE’S RESPONSE: All South Carolina public charter schools and school districts are eligible to participate in this testing program. Testing spread will be dependent upon the districts that request vendor testing services.

VENDOR QUESTION 24: What accessibility and ADA accommodations will the vendor be required to support?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Details regarding accessibility and ADA accommodations will be dependent upon the charter school or district that the contractor is partnered with.

VENDOR QUESTION 25: How many testing sites/schools shall we consider?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Due to the nature of the pandemic and variability of requests received from charter schools and districts, DHEC will not be able to forecast expected testing site quantities. During the 2021-2022 school year, participating charter schools and districts requested daily or weekly testing at one or more locations based on their organizational and community needs. Across the state there were 220 vendor testing events that took place at school locations during the week of February 29-March 6, 2022, and 215 vendor testing events during the week of March 7-13, 2022.

VENDOR QUESTION 26: We would request you to share the volume estimation on how many tests the state would be looking at via sites on daily/weekly/monthly basis?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Due to the nature of the pandemic and variability of requests received from charter schools and districts, DHEC will not be able to forecast expected weekly volume. During the 2021-2022 school year, charter schools and districts requested daily or weekly testing at one or more locations based on their organizational and community needs. The majority of test events qualified as “small events” with a range of 0-75 tests performed per event. However, as many as 350 tests were performed at a single event and vendors should have the capability to perform several hundred tests if needed. Across the state there were 220 vendor testing events that took place at school locations during the week of February 29-March 6, 2022, and 215 vendor testing events during the week of March 7-13, 2022.

VENDOR QUESTION 27: We have to provide the unit price for each lot. Unit price shall be inclusive of infrastructure and staffing costs? Please confirm

STATE’S RESPONSE: Price shall be an all-inclusive testing cost per test.

VENDOR QUESTION 28: Please share the schedule for the testing. Daily or once a week or however its expected with the hours.

STATE’S RESPONSE: During the 2021-2022 school year, charter schools and districts requested daily or weekly testing at one or more locations based on their organizational and community needs. Many testing locations had operational hours that were similar to school hours, however several school districts requested testing events on weekends. Schools may request that testing services begin and end before and after school hours to maximize accessibility to students and staff.

VENDOR QUESTION 29: Please describe what, if any, roles, duties, or responsibilities the successful offeror will be expected to provide for contact tracing.

STATE’S RESPONSE: The contractor will have no roles, duties, or responsibilities related to contact tracing.

VENDOR QUESTION 30: Will all testing be performed during school hours only?

STATE’S RESPONSE: During the 2021-2022 school year many testing locations had operational hours that were similar to school hours, however several school districts requested testing events on weekends. Schools may request that testing services begin and end before and after school hours to maximize accessibility to students and staff.

VENDOR QUESTION 31: Will the school provide the demographic information necessary to complete DHEC 1335 OE form before a test is performed?

If no, what information will be provided to the vendor before a test is performed?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Completion of DHEC 1335 OE form is no longer required, information is now submitted electronically. Please refer to Section III. Scope of Work/Specifications of the solicitation document – 3.2 DHEC Result Reporting. 3.2.2. which states DHEC must receive all lab results via Electronic Lab Report (ELR). Laboratories must be able to send HL7 v2.5.1 messages or CSV files. Vendor will be expected to electronically transmit information to the state.

Demographic information will be collected on contractor provided consent forms that have been approved by school or district administration. Unless a different procedure is established with the charter school or district, school students (or their parent/guardian) and staff will complete forms providing necessary demographic information for test result reporting.

VENDOR QUESTION 33: Will testing be performed during evening and/or weekends?

STATE’S RESPONSE: During the 2021-2022 school year many testing locations had operational hours that were similar to school hours, however several school districts requested testing events on weekends. Schools may request that testing services begin and end before and after school hours to maximize accessibility to students and staff.

VENDOR QUESTION 34: How many days per week will routine testing be performed in each school?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Due to the nature of the pandemic and variability of requests received from charter schools and districts, DHEC will not be able to guarantee weekly school schedules. During the 2021-2022 school year, participating charter schools and districts requested 1-6 days of testing per week at one or more locations based on their organizational and community needs.

VENDOR QUESTION 35: Will testing be performed on a regular, routine schedule?

STATE’S RESPONSE: During the 2021-2022 school year, participating charter schools and districts requested daily or weekly testing at one or more locations based on their organizational and community needs. It is anticipated that much of the testing during the 2022-2023 school year will be scheduled with charter schools and districts in advance on a routine basis. It is possible contractors will also receive requests to provide temporary short-term testing on short notice due to higher case rates in a particular school or a cohort outbreak, etc. refer to Section III. Scope of Work/Specifications of the solicitation document – 3.1.15. which states contractor may receive requests to provide temporary testing services at new locations with 24-72 hours’ notice. Please include details regarding start-up processes and time frame if offeror is able to fulfill such requests.

VENDOR QUESTION 36: What is the process for obtaining consent for testing with a minor student? Will the vendor be responsible for obtaining consent? Will the vendor’s responsibility be limited to reviewing the consent for completeness?

STATE’S RESPONSE: A parent or guardian will complete consents for testing of students that are unable to sign for themselves. The contractor is advised to review the consent for completeness.

VENDOR QUESTION 37: If a Mobile Testing Site (outdoor, using tents) is required, will the school provide electricity and restroom facilities for the testing staff?

STATE’S RESPONSE: It is possible that charter schools or districts may be able to provide resources such as electricity and restrooms for testing staff. However, in the event these are not provided by the charter school or district the contractor should be prepared to provide everything required for turnkey testing, including electricity and restroom facilities for testing staff.

VENDOR QUESTION 38: In the event of an outdoor mobile clinic, is there a minimum/maxim temperature range or weather conditions beyond which the clinic will be cancelled.

STATE’S RESPONSE: During the 2021-2022 school year testing events were cancelled or cut short when severe storms were experienced at the testing location. There was not a minimum or maximum temperature range established as a parameter for canceling events.

VENDOR QUESTION 39: Will the vendor receive the name and contact information for each testing location prior to the scheduled time of the clinic to coordinate access, logistics, storage, power, etc.?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Yes, the vendor will be partnered with charter school or district contacts in advance to coordinate access, storage, power, scheduling, and all associated logistics.

VENDOR QUESTION 40: Will the vendor perform confirmatory PCR testing for anyone with a positive Antigen Rapid test?

STATE’S RESPONSE: No, the vendor will not perform any PCR testing.

VENDOR QUESTION 41: Do both the OTC antigen and POC antigen tests need to test for Flu A/B and COVID-19?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Please refer to Section III. Scope of Work/Specifications of the solicitation document – 3.1.1 which states that cross-panel tests including Flu A/B and Covid-19 are preferred. Cross-panel tests are not required.

VENDOR QUESTION 42: How many mobile/semi-permanent sites do you anticipate opening per district and for the whole state?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Due to the nature of the pandemic and variability of requests received from charter schools and districts, DHEC will not be able to forecast expected testing site quantities. During the 2021-2022 school year, participating charter schools and districts requested daily or weekly testing at one or more locations based on their organizational and community needs. Across the state there were 220 vendor testing events that took place at school locations during the week of February 29-March 6, 2022, and 215 vendor testing events during the week of March 7-13, 2022.

VENDOR QUESTION 43: The RFP states that you anticipate awarding to multiple vendors. Approximately how many school districts would you anticipate assigning to a vendor?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Due to the nature of the pandemic and variability of requests received from charter schools and districts, DHEC will not be able to forecast number of participating school districts.

VENDOR QUESTION 44: The RFP calls for “mobile” sites. How frequently, if at all, would you anticipate a mobile site moving to a different location?

STATE’S RESPONSE: During the 2021-2022 school year, participating charter schools and districts requested daily or weekly testing at one or more locations based on their organizational and community needs. The majority of test events qualified as “small events” with a range of 0-75 tests performed per event. However, as many as 350 tests were performed at a single event and vendors should have the capability to perform several hundred tests if needed. Across the state there were 220 vendor testing events that took place at school locations during the week of February 29-March 6, 2022, and 215 vendor testing events during the week of March 7-13, 2022.

VENDOR QUESTION 46: Under Section IV, Part 2 the Qualifications of the Offeror, it clearly states if you do not meet the requirement, do not submit. However, even though I do not have Qualifications b – g, my subcontractors will. Can I still submit a bid if I can show that my subcontractors have the b – g qualifications?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Please refer to Section IV. Information for Offerors to Submit 2. Qualifications and Experience of the solicitation document. All contractors must meet qualifications a. and c.-g. in order to be considered. Contractors may submit a bid if they can show that the business entity that will be performing tests (contractor or subcontractor) meet qualification b. by having and maintaining appropriate CLIA certification and/or waiver for the testing that will be performed.

VENDOR QUESTION 47: I have registered for this Solicitation in the SCEIS system already. However, I have also begun the registration process to change my current ID to another name with a different Tax ID number versus currently using my social security number as my Tax ID, but I have not completed the process. My question is can I change this solicitation request to my new business name and number once I complete the process at this point or do I need to continue with the current name and ID number you already have in the system?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Submit your proposal using your current Tax ID number.

VENDOR QUESTION 48: Please provide an extension to your Question period through 7/28/2022.

STATE’S RESPONSE: The vendor questions period has ended and was not extended.

VENDOR QUESTION 49: Please clarify if onsite testing is mandatory or if SCDHEC would consider other testing options such as a voucher or voucher-wrap program.

STATE’S RESPONSE: Onsite testing is mandatory.

VENDOR QUESTION 50: I wanted to see if I could get more information around the meaning of “testing sites include Mobile and may include Semi-permanent”. For mobile testing, is the request to have the ability to drive to a staff/student’s house to administer a test or provide OTC tests?

Or is the “mobile” definition more so meaning that our staff needs to have the ability to, for example, go from a high school to an elementary school as needed?

3.1.1. Testing deployment for turn-key testing sites include Mobile and may include Semi-permanent. All testing sites will provide both OTC antigen test distribution and turnkey POC antigen testing concurrently at all events.

STATE’S RESPONSE: It is not expected that schools will provide building space for contractor use, and testing sites should be able to be removed from the facility premises once testing is complete. In this sense they may be considered mobile or semi-permanent. Mobile testing does not indicate driving to different locations to perform tests. It is expected that testing events will take place in one location. Whether the contractor will need to move testing sites to fulfill requests in other locations will depend upon the resources available to the contractor.

VENDOR QUESTION 52: Item 3.1.16 – DHEC COVID19 School Services Manager – who / how many?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Kendra Neely is the DHEC COVID-19 School Services Manager.

VENDOR QUESTION 54: Please provide the list of the schools that participated in the program the past two years.

STATE’S RESPONSE: This information may be requested through the Freedom of Information office by submitting a FOIA request to FOI@dhec.sc.gov

VENDOR QUESTION 55: Please provide summary reports to illustrate weekly, monthly data for reference and benchmarking purposes?

STATE’S RESPONSE: During the 2021-2022 school year, across the state there were 220 vendor testing events that took place at school locations February 29-March 6 and 215 vendor testing events March 7-13. The majority of test events qualified as “small events” with a range of 0-75 tests performed per event. However, as many as 350 tests were performed at a single event and vendors should have the capability to perform several hundred tests if needed.

VENDOR QUESTION 56: How will vendor(s) be assigned; and how will DHEC know that there is an “outbreak” and therefore need to assign additional vendors?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Each awarded contractor will be assigned locations based on requests received by charter schools and districts. It is anticipated that much of the testing during the 2022-2023 school year will be scheduled with charter schools and districts in advance on a routine basis. It is possible contractors will also receive requests to provide temporary short-term testing on short notice due to higher case rates in a particular school or a cohort outbreak, etc. Please refer to Section III. Scope of Work/Specifications of the solicitation document – 3.1.15. which states contractor may receive requests to provide temporary testing services at new locations with 24-72 hours’ notice. It is not anticipated that additional vendors will be awarded contracts during the school year.

VENDOR QUESTION 57: There is a mention of sample transportation to and from the lab in the RFP. Is there going to be an expectation that the antigen samples are brought to a PHL after testing?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Disregard the language below which has been stricken from Section 3.1., 3.1.9. Contractor shall provide materials for sample labeling, storage, and transport from collection site to the lab(s) Disregard the language below which has been stricken from Section IV, 1. j. Provide a copy of your standard operating procedures for COVID-19 testing, including procedures to properly collect samples, dispose of infectious/medical waste, and, if applicable, to store and transport samples from sample collection site to the lab(s).

VENDOR QUESTION 58: Will DHEC be responsible for reaching out to the districts then distributing to the appropriate vendor?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Yes, DHEC will reach out to districts and assign resulting requests for testing to vendors as appropriate.

VENDOR QUESTION 59: Will the vendor be able to reach out to districts in their awarded zones?

STATE’S RESPONSE: No, vendor outreach will not be necessary.

VENDOR QUESTION 60: Is the vendor expected to provide contact tracing services in addition to amending the consent form?

STATE’S RESPONSE: No, the vendor will not provide additional contact tracing services.

VENDOR QUESTION 62: Are mobile and semi-permanent testing sites the only permitted types of testing sites?

STATE’S RESPONSE: The contractor will be responsible for setting up all testing sites and providing all materials necessary for turnkey testing including appropriate shelter for staff during testing operations. It is not expected that schools will provide building space for contractor use or that contractors will build a permanent structure. Contractors will coordinate with charter schools and districts that they are partnered with to ensure that the structure type used for testing events is appropriate for the location.

VENDOR QUESTION 63: Can a school or district office be a "home base" for regular testing if this is the school or district's preferred configuration?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Yes, some school districts may request testing services at one central location for the district.

VENDOR QUESTION 64: Can the Contractor price on a per testing site basis in two categories, for example 1. flat price to stand-up each site; 2. weekly or monthly price for maintaining each site?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Pricing shall be an all-inclusive price per test. No alternate pricing method will be accepted.

VENDOR QUESTION 65: Can you provide detailed instructions on how to fill out the price sheet?

What are all the types of costs the state expects applicants to account for?

What assumptions should we make?

Volumes anticipated?

Days/hours of estimated testing operations?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Please refer to Section III and Section VIII of the Solicitation.

VENDOR QUESTION 66: Are there any Minority, Woman, Veteran, or locally owned business requirements for submission?

STATE’S RESPONSE: There are no requirements.

VENDOR QUESTION 67: Will there be a prioritization of awarding vendors based on Minority, Woman, Veteran, or locally owned business status?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Preferences do not apply per South Carolina Consolidated Procurement Code Section 11-35-1524, Part (E)(5).

VENDOR QUESTION 69: Does an award guarantee work or is this an MSA type of program where districts have the option to opt-in?

Is school district participation voluntary or required?

Will there be a testing requirement in schools for this school year? If so, what is the policy?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Due to the nature of the pandemic and variability of requests received from charter schools and districts, DHEC will not be able to guarantee a certain amount of work to awarded contractors. School district participation is voluntary, they may choose whether they would like to opt-in. School students and staff with COVID-19 related symptoms are required to submit a negative test result in order to return to school sooner than 5 days after the start of symptoms (if it has been 24 hours since the last fever without the use of fever-reducing medication and symptoms have significantly improved). If a negative result is not submitted, wearing a mask through days 6-10 after symptoms began is also required. When a cohort outbreak has been identified by the health department in a school, DHEC recommends COVID-19 and influenza testing for symptomatic individuals, and testing on day 5 for close contacts. DHEC strongly recommends that charter schools and districts follow CDC guidance which recommends diagnostic testing at all times for “anyone that has signs and symptoms consistent with COVID-19 and/or following recent known or suspected exposure to the virus that causes COVID-19.” CDC guidance also recommends screening testing at medium and high COVID-19 Community Levels.

VENDOR QUESTION 70: What were average volumes per district last year?

Per region?

STATE’S RESPONSE: During the 2021-2022 school year, participating charter schools and districts requested daily or weekly testing at one or more locations based on their organizational and community needs. The majority of test events qualified as “small events” with a range of 0-75 tests performed per event. However, as many as 350 tests were performed at a single event and vendors should have the capability to perform several hundred tests if needed. Across the state there were 220 vendor testing events that took place at school locations during the week of February 29-March 6, 2022, and 215 vendor testing events during the week of March 7-13, 2022. During that time period, 39 charter schools and districts were participating and the state was broken into DHEC’s four public health regions. It is not guaranteed that this organizational structure will remain the same in the coming school year.

VENDOR QUESTION 71: Will program designs vary from school district to district (i.e., be customized) or will the districts be provided one or more models to choose from?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Program designs will be determined by the charter schools and districts. During the 2021-2022 school year, participating charter schools and districts requested 1-6 days of diagnostic and/or screening testing per week at one or more locations based on their organizational and community needs.

VENDOR QUESTION 72: What role will the state play in designing programs for districts? What role will the vendor play? What role will the districts play?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Program designs will be determined by the charter schools and districts in coordination with contractors. DHEC will remain available as a resource to assist with this coordination as necessary. During the 2021-2022 school year, participating charter schools and districts requested 1-6 days of diagnostic and/or screening testing per week at one or more locations based on their organizational and community needs.

VENDOR QUESTION 73: Will districts be required to request services by a certain date or will requests for testing be allowed throughout the year on a rolling basis?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Charter schools and districts will be encouraged to request services at the beginning of the award period. Every effort will be made to fulfill additional requests that are received throughout the year.

VENDOR QUESTION 74: Do you consider pricing as confidential/trade secrets?

STATE’S RESPONSE: No, the pricing is confidential until after a final statement of award has been published.

VENDOR QUESTION 75: Does the state/will the districts require customer experience (CX) support or does the state/districts plan to provide their own support?

If customer support is needed from the vendor, can you outline pricing instructions for customer support?

Should customer support be accounted for in vendor pricing proposals?

If the vendor is expected to provide customer support, what are the preferred hours of operation?

STATE’S RESPONSE: It is expected that contractor staff will provide excellent customer service to school students, staff, and parents during scheduled testing events. It is also expected that the contractor will be available to coordinate logistics with and respond to charter school and district concerns throughout the week as necessary. This solicitation is for turn-key testing; vendor pricing proposals are all-inclusive for all services that will be provided by the contractor.

VENDOR QUESTION 76: How many schools are estimated to be supported?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Due to the nature of the pandemic and variability of requests received from charter schools and districts, DHEC will not be able to forecast expected testing site quantities. During the 2021-2022 school year, participating charter schools and districts requested daily or weekly testing at one or more locations based on their organizational and community needs. Across the state there were 220 vendor testing events that took place at school locations during the week of February 29-March 6, 2022, and 215 vendor testing events during the week of March 7-13, 2022. During that time period, 39 charter schools and districts were participating.

VENDOR QUESTION 77: What languages will the vendor be required to support? How will the vendor be required to support said languages?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Required languages include English. Providing written materials in other common languages such as Spanish is preferable. If phone translation is available this will assist contractor staff to provide accessible testing services to all eligible participants. What relevant languages other than English are to the eligible population will be coordinated with the charter schools and districts that the contractor is partnered with.

VENDOR QUESTION 78: Does the laboratory need a CLIA certificate issued by the state of SC?

STATE’S RESPONSE: If the contractor has a mobile CLIA in another state, they will be permitted to test in SC by notifying the CLIA office here in SC. Typically, that means sending a letter to the CLIA office with the CLIA ID, dates of testing and locations and testing to be offered. If the contractor does not already hold appropriate CLIA certification and/or waiver they will need to contact the SC CLIA office to register for appropriate certification.

VENDOR QUESTION 79: Will the contractor be responsible for providing contact tracing / case investigation services in the event of a positive case?

STATE’S RESPONSE: The contractor will not be responsible for providing contact tracing / case investigation services in the event of a positive case.

VENDOR QUESTION 80: The solicitation requires POC tests so, when those are used, must the contractor determine test results at the specimen collection site?

If so, will students wait to receive their test results at the specimen collection site, and can they be verbal at the site or must they be in writing or electronic while at the site?

Conversely, may the contractor transport specimens to its laboratory and perform testing more efficiently there?

STATE’S RESPONSE: Yes, the test results must be determined at the specimen collection site. The test results must be delivered within the timeframe set by the manufacturer’s instructions for the rapid antigen tests used. Test result delivery may not be delayed by specimen transport to a laboratory.

It is expected that school students and staff will wait to receive their test results at the specimen collection site. However, test results must also be given in writing or electronically, as determined by the charter school or district.

END OF AMENDMENT ONE

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