Consolidated_Questions_19QA025_19QA029.xlsx

XLSX spreadsheet 18 KB Posted Oct 24, 2019

Attached to: Patient Liaison/Medical Translation Service Spangdahlem
Solicitation number: FA560619QA025
Issued by: Department of the Air Force United States Air Forces in Europe - Air Forces Africa

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Other files

File	Type	Posted
Solicitation Amendment FA560619QA0250002 SF 30 (signed).pdf	PDF	Nov 27, 2019
Solicitation_Amendment_FA560619QA0250001_SF_30.pdf	PDF	Oct 29, 2019
Solicitation_-_FA560619QA025_Issued_by_CO_01_Oct_19_(1).pdf	PDF	Oct 1, 2019
PWS_Patient_Liaison_Medical_Translation_Spang_Sep_2019_CON-IT.pdf	PDF	Oct 1, 2019
Past_Performance_Questionaire.pdf	PDF	Oct 1, 2019

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Sheet1 FA560619QA025 & FA560619QA029 - Questions and Answers

PWS Para 1.2.2.1 Availability	What are the hours of coverage required at the HNFs on German and U.S. holidays?
	PLS in the HNF shall be available Mon-Fri 0800 though 1800; Sat and Sun from 0900 through 1500. Work hours on US and German Holidays will fall in line with beforementioned hours.

PWS Para 1.2.5.3.1 Criminal Background Check	When is the CHBC due to the Government?
	The CHBC should be completed and provided to the government in a time frame that is reasonable to process paperwork and get the contractor approved for base access. This is typically a 2 week process but should be completed as soon as possible. It is required prior to employees receiving ID cards and computer access.

PWS Para 1.2.5.3.2 Criminal Background Check	Contractors without a completed background check who work in the HNF may not have a 'staff member whose background check has been completed' available to supervise them. Would an HNF supervisor be acceptable?
	No, HNF supervison (oversight) would not be acceptable.

PWS Para 1.2.5.2 & 1.9 Criminal Background Check; Solicitation pg 5, Description/Specifications/Statement of Work	a. Is a Polizeiliches Führungszeugnis (German Criminal Record Check or Police Clearance Certificate) acceptable for Local Nationals?
	Acceptable for Local Nationals; it may not be older than 90 days.
	b. Per the Solicitation, this a non-personal services contract. Please verify that the costs for conducting background checks and the costs for all necessary insurances (to include Medical Malpractice errors and omissions (E&O)) if required are the responsibility of the contractor. If so, please verify that these costs are not separately billable and should be included in the Fully Burdened Firm fixed price of the CLINs.
	This is the contractor's responsibility

PWS 1.4.1 & 1.4.3 Health Requirements	Providing a health certificate 5 days prior to commencement of work may not be practical depending on when the contract is awarded. When is the contract expected to be awarded?
	Contract is expected to be awarded on 22 Nov 19.

General, PWS 1.6 & 1.7 MTF In/Out Processing; Orientation	Several requirements are due at the beginning of employment. Does the Government anticipate or will a transition period be authorized/provided to allow for in-processing/orientation ? If so, how long will this period be?
	There will not be an extetion to the contract for a transtion period. The employee will begin work on the first day of the contract and will settle into the postion as needed. In-processing typically takes 2-4 weeks to complete

General	Will SOFA Status/Individual Logistic Support (ILS) be provided under Article 72 Troop Care Status Accreditation (TCSA), NATO SOFA Agreement under the job descrition 'medical services coordinators'? If so, which priviliges are provided?
	Positions will not provide SOFA status

PWS 3.3.3 Extended Absences/Personnel Changes	Will there be any overlap/transition period provided with current incumbent Patient Liaisons or Medical Translators?
	No, no overlap/transition period will be provided.

PWS 4.5.1 Administrative Support	a. Will IT support (computers, scanners, printers) be available in the HNF in order to upload date to the Inpatient Tracker?
	Spangdahlem - Yes, the MDG Systems Flight will support the PLs at the HNFs and in the MTF.
	Geilenkirchen - There are not any designated offices at our HNF's but the contractor employee will have 24 hour access to the base and the clinic which has complete IT equipment available.
	b. Will Cell phones be provided by the USG?
	No, cell phones will not be provided.

PWS 7.2.5 Certification; Evaluation Factors, Factor 2 Technical Capability Sub-Fator 1	Both references state that certicates are required at the 'beginning of employment' but are listed as part of of the evaluation factors. Can the Government please clarify if these certifications are to be provided with the proposal or are they required after award?
	The certifications should be provided with the quotes as they will be needed for the technical evaluation.

Solicitation pg 3, Supplies or Services and Prices/Cost CLIN structure	Are CLINS to be priced as 'fully burdened' (ie include travel, relocation, cell phone costs, weekend and holiday premiums, insurances, CMR reporting, administrative and overhead costs) or does the Government intend to include CLINS with Not To Exceed (NTE) amount for these items?
	There will be one CLIN per Period of Performance as a Firm-Fixed-Price. It is not intended to have additional NTE CLINS.

Solicitation pg 3, Supplies or Services and Prices/Cost CLIN structure	The solicitation does not reference FAR Clause 52.228-4 Workers compensation. Is Defense Base Act (DBA) insurance per FAR Clause 52.228-4 or is waived due to Workers Compensation/Disability Insurance being provided by the local company? If required, is this a separately reimburseable cost or should it be included in the fully burdened price?
	This contract is not for a "public-work"; therefore the clause is not required.

Solicitation pg 3, Supplies or Services and Prices/Cost CLIN structure	What insurances (ie General Liability, Vehicle, Workers Comp, Malpractice, etc) are required to be provided by the contractot and in what amounts/limits?
	The Government does not require any insurance outside of German Government requirements

Solicitation pg 18, DFARS Clause252.222-7002 Compliance with Local Labor Laws	a. Can the Government please outline specifically what is required for complianece or provide references to ensure compliance with this requirement?
	b. Is a company or its subsidiary required to be registed with the German authorities and have a German Tax ID in order to pay necessary company, income and individual social taxes to the appropriate German tax authorities ?
	c. How does the USG ensure contractor compliance with this particular DFARS clause?
	The requirements of the clause are self-explanatory. Contractors seeking to conduct business in Germany are responsible for determining what it means to be "compliant" with local labor laws. Contractors are bound by the terms and conditions of the contract(s) they have entered. As such, if at any time during performance under a contract containing the clause at DFARS 252.222-7002, the contractor is found to be deficient in their obligation to comply with local labor laws, they may be found to be in breach of the contract terms and conditions.
Solicitation pg 49, Evaluation Factors, Factor 2 - Technical Capability	There appears to be a discrepency between the statements 'Certificate is required at the beginning of employment (Sub-Factor 1)' and 'Documentation shall be provided (Subfactor 2 and 3)'. a. Will the Government please clarify whether or not we shall provide resumes, diplomas and other specific individual certifications with the proposal or are these items due immediately after award?
	Documention shall be provided with the quotes for technical evaluation purposes.
	b. Are letters of commitment from proposed individuals required?
	Not necessarily required. If changes occur between the evaluation and start of performance, please ensure that the documention is provided prior to commencement of work.

Solicitation pg 49, Evaluation Factors, Factor 2 - Technical Capability	Will the Government entertain adding a 2 week transition period in order to conduct necessary training/in-processing and to provide a seamless transition to a potential new contractor?
	There will not be an extetion to the contract for a transtion period. The employee will begin work on the first day of the contract and will settle into the postion as needed.

PWS 1.2.3	Will backfill coverage be required for the Medical Translator and if so, after how many days?
	Please refer to PWS paragraph 3.3.3.

PWS 1.2.5.1.1 Language requirement	The Patient Liaisons for the 52nd MDG at Spangdahlem AB are only required level 3.Will the government please verify that both the Patient Liaison and the Medical Translator are required to be at level 4 in all categories?
	52MDG requires level 3 and 470ABS GK requires level 4

Solicitation pg 49, Evaluation Factors, Factor 2 - Technical Capability

Apparently current incumbent employees are being directed not to provide resumes, or other information required by the solicitation to potential bidders as a potential violation of their employment agreement. This may hinder potential bidders from providing incumbent personnel to support this requirement. Will the Government consider addressing this issue with the current contractors as not in the Government's best interest to restrict the current incumbents and may cause delays in service? Should this restriction remain in place, will the Government entertain adding a 2 week transition period in order to provide a seamless transition to a potential new contractor?

The US Government will not get involved in contractor employer-employee relations. And additional 2 week transition period will not be granted.

Are you able to provide the name of the current incumbent and their prices?

PLO Servcies - Task Order against Landstuhl IDIQ, company Sterling Medical Associates - $569,495.20/Year

Medical Translation Service Spangdahlem, Stand Alone Contract, Company Kern AG - $63,000/year

Medical Translation Service Geilenkirchen, Stand Alone Contract, Company Sterling Medical Associates - $91,691.76/year

Have you experienced any difficulties with the current incumbent?

No significant difficulties were experienced regarding contract performance.

How does the Air Base currently handle this requirement now?

Services are being provided under different contracts.

Is the Air Base open to using technology for patient liaison scheduling and streamlining translation?

The MDG would be open to learning more about PL scheduling/streamlining medical translations, but does have some contractual requirements already in place that may limit what changes or process improvements may be implemented in the future.

Do you have data on how many hours per week/month have been used historically (2019 or 2018 full-year data preferred)?

Historical Data is provided in PWS

We recognize that with medical care, emergencies do come up, but how much advance notice is typically provided for a given appointment/need?

A report is produced in our internal Gov’t system (approximately weekly) by our beneficiary counselors for appointments scheduled roughly four weeks in advance. Additional time and flexibility is given to urgent appointments.

Is there preference for the Patient Liaison and Medical Translator to be employees or contractors to NATO?

No preference.

Are all candidates expected to be able to read/understand/speak/write all three languages, or at least two of the three?No preference.

All candidates for GK are expected to be able to read/understand/speak/write English, Dutch, and German.

All candidates for Spangdahlem are expected to be able to read/understand/speak/write English, and German.

Are there any nationality/citizenship requirements?

There as no nationality/citizenship requirements as long as the individuals working in the MTF (and their potential back-ups) can gain base access.

What are the most common appointment-types that these individuals would cover?

The most common appointment types are routine that the PLs assist with, but they also cover specialty and urgent types for patients as needed.

For translation, do you require that the work be handled on-site or translation be handled off-site within our standard workflow for document translation services?

The majority are on-the-spot translations that the PLs conduct for the patients. At times, the MTF PL(s) will assist with translations for the providers in the MDG.

Please confirm all on-site activity will be At 470th Medical Flight/Geilenkirchen Air Base (AB), Germany. Any communication/work with other facilities (within or outside of Germany) would be remote.

All HNF’s will be treated as on site operations for the Patient Liaisons due to the nature of that occupation. The medical translator will be based out of the 470th MTF and will not travel to out outside facilities.

Does the government plan to provide SOFA or TESA to any of the position or are they all considered Ordinary Residents?

SOFA or TESA status will not be granted for these positions.

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