MMCAP Infuse Request for Proposals (RFP) Addendum

Addendum # 1

Addendum No.: 1 ______ Date of Addendum: February 27, 2025___

Due Date, Time: March 14, 2025, at Revised Date, Time: N/A_____________ 2:00pm Central Time

MMCAP Infuse Department of Administration/OSP/ RFP Coordinator: Nalee Xiong Agency: MMCAP Infuse

OSP Website Reference No.: 35297 ______

RFP Title: Incontinence Products

Scope of Addendum

Section 1: The following are answers to questions submitted to MMCAP Infuse. Questions appear in no particular order and have been grouped with similar questions.

1. Question: Who is this solicitation aimed at?

Is your solicitation only for manufacturers to deliver incontinence or does it also include

DMEPOS suppliers?

Is this bid directed to manufacturers or distributors? If it is for distributors, do you have to be an authorized MMCAP distributor already to participate, or is participation in this RFP an opportunity for us to become an authorized MMCAP distributor?

Is it necessary for the supplier to be registered in Minnesota?

In reference to RFP Section 2, please confirm Responders are not required to be Manufacturers of Incontinence Products.

Do we need to get approval from our distributor in advance?

How many manufacturers/distributors are currently on MMCAP?

Will this RFP be awarded to a sole source or dual source? (Will there be more than one vendor awarded).

Could we quote for products from multiple manufacturers?

Is this a bid for a single source or more?

Can we know who the current approved vendors and products for this category are?

As this RFP is used in different States including California, can the State consider expanding the Preference Points to Federal and other State minority certifications as well?

Please confirm if product would ship both direct to Members and to Authorized Distributors, who would in turn distribute to Members.

Are Responders required to utilize a certain number of Authorized Distributors?

Does each Responder need to affirmatively contact the Authorized Distributors listed on pg. 8 prior to submitting a proposal to confirm which ones would carry Responder's product line, if awarded a contract resulting from this solicitation?

What do Responders need to provide in order to “certify” that an Authorized Distributor has agreed to the MMCAP Infuse contracted pricing?

Can MMCAP confirm if the intent is to capture current MMCAP Incontinence sales through other MMCAP contract vehicles in the standalone MMCAP Incontinence contract offering?

Answer: MMCAP Infuse is seeking only manufacturers of incontinence products who are able serve MMCAP Infuse members across all 50 states by: a) shipping products directly to members, and/or b) stocking and distributing incontinence products with MMCAP Infuse authorized distributors.

Respondents may choose to ship direct to members, provide product to MMCAP Infuse authorized distributors to deliver product to members, or both ship direct and through authorized distributors.

There is no minimum number of authorized distributors that a manufacturer must work with, but responders must be able to provide evidence, upon request, that any authorized distributor indicated in their response will abide by MMCAP Infuse contracted pricing if the responder is awarded.

Of the responses that meet minimum qualifications, the top scoring manufacturers will be considered for awards, which may result in multiple contracts. Proposals from manufacturers that are not currently registered with the State of Minnesota may still be considered. Manufacturers should only submit their own products as part of their response. Preference points will not be applied in the evaluation of this

RFP.

This solicitation is related to a program currently active within MMCAP Infuse, and operates within the same framework as represented in the RFP, targeted at manufacturers of incontinence products with the capacity to offer product directly and/or through authorized distributors. Current incontinence manufacturer agreements are held by the following manufacturers: Attends Healthcare Products, Essity HMS North America, Medline Industries, and First Quality Products. Eligible authorized distributors have previously been awarded through our RFP for wholesalers/distributors of medical supplies and currently include: Cardinal Health; Concordance Healthcare Solutions; Henry Schein, Inc.; McKesson Medical-Surgical Government Solutions, LLC; Medical Solutions, Inc.; Medline Industries; and Premier Medical Distribution. Authorized distributors may change during the course of agreements resulting from this RFP, based on future solicitations for the medical supply program as well as programmatic changes as needed.

2. Question: Who are MMCAP Infuse's members? (Who uses these agreements?)

In section 3, bullet 4.2, you question how the team is prepared to serve MMCAP-Infuse members in VA Homes. To my knowledge, MMCAP-Infuse is not applicable in the VA. This is often misused terminology, but the “VA” stands for the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs.

Therefore, should the verbiage in the question be changed from “VA Homes” to “State Veteran Homes”?

We have the ability to provide a punchout system for ordering, what system do you use for that?

SAP Ariba, etc.? Do you have a cXML or OCI connection? The solicitation calls for EDI and or punch out and I simply need to know what procurement system you’re using and the type of connection.

Are you looking to purchase incontinence products? If yes what is the specs on the item you are looking for?

It doesn’t say usage for the item; can we get information?

What is the total amount of incontinence business going through this agreement on an annual basis now?

The reference to contracts in excess of 100.000$ the value is monthly/yearly or the duration of the contract which is 2 years?

Can MMCAP confirm if the 2024 MMCAP Infuse $25 million of incontinence related sales referenced solely reflects sales via the current Incontinence contract or if it also includes sales of incontinence products that are authorized for sale through other MMCAP contract vehicles?

Answer: MMCAP Infuse is a national cooperative group purchasing organization (GPO) for state, county, and local government facilities that provide healthcare services in all 50 states, including over 34,500 ship-to facilities with 11,510 purchasing members. Among our membership listings are state-run veterans’ homes; state veteran affairs departments may also use the VA abbreviation within their names.

Contracts resulting from this RFP may be utilized by any of our members to order incontinence products for their facilities. The Incontinence Products Cost Proposal should be completed with the relevant items each Responder is able to provide. Punch-out systems utilized by our members will vary by state/facility, and therefore the system requirements may also vary. If your Response does include direct Member ordering and shipping, be sure to completely detail your capabilities in your response to question 20.a. in the Technical Proposal.

In calendar year 2024, our members ordered approximately $25,000,000 in incontinence products from a combination of shipments directly from contracted manufacturer, as well as through authorized distributors. This consisted of roughly over 50% briefs and underwear, followed by roughly 15% each wipes and underpads, with the remaining percentage of sales including cleansers, creams and other related products. Contracts resulting from this RFP will be signed for an initial 2-year term but may be extended upwards of a total of 5 years.

Regarding the “in excess of $100,000” for the Workforce and Equal Pay Declaration Page, this is in reference to the total value of the contract being executed, which may be extended upwards of 5 years total. All Responders are required to complete Exhibit C.

3. Question: Questions related to pricing structure and completing the cost proposal.

Can we get the attached file unlocked?

The excel sheet for products and pricing is password locked. Are you able to get me a clean excel sheet to populate?

It appears that the sheet is restricted, and we are unable to view all the instructions.

Additionally, we are also unable to access the "Incontinence Standard" section. This is hindering our ability to proceed with the proposal as required.

Are we able to add products that are not listed on the attached file?

Can we provide more than one item code per “Product Type” outlined in column B of your cost proposal work sheet?

Please clarify MMCAP's intent re: pricing structure if the awardee is selling direct and via an

Authorized Distributor. Do awardees and Authorized Distributors each add a markup over the proposed cost?

What is the lowest unit of measure the product will be purchased in (case or bag/pack)? If bag/pack is the lowest unit of measure, but product will also be purchased in case unit of measure, is the expectation that the majority of purchases will be in case or bag/pack?

In our current MMCAP-Infuse contract, our contracted pricing is our price into distribution, not end-user pricing. Is this the same for the Base Price and Tiered Price in the new proposal?

Do you require the products to be manufactured in the USA?

Answer: An updated Incontinence Products Cost Proposal file has been uploaded and is available for download. This should correct issues experienced with locked cells. Each line should only include one item code. You can add additional incontinence items below in the cost proposal. Base pricing included in your completed Incontinence Products Cost Proposal should reflect the price based on how you’ve elected to deliver products. If selling/shipping direct to members, base pricing would be the direct to member price.

If also choosing to work through authorized distributors, base pricing would also be price to distributor.

Products made available to members through authorized distributors would be subject to an additional markup defined by each authorized distributor, resulting in a higher price to the member. Tiered pricing, for the purposes of this solicitation, should reflect (if applicable) a price lower than base price accessible to qualifying members (or to authorized distributors for sales made to qualifying members), as described in your response to question 13 of the Technical Proposal. The lowest selling unit of measure will be based on capabilities of awarded manufacturers, but pricing included within the first 54 lines of the Products and Pricing tab of the Incontinence Products Cost Proposal should reflect case pricing. Responders able to meet the requirements of this RFP are welcome to respond regardless of where their products are manufactured.

4. Question: Explain testing parameters necessary for products.

We have told that ISO-9001 is the specific lab that can do testing requirements for this RFP.

Can you please comment and/or confirm?

Are the any other ISO certified labs will be satisfactory to State to perform testing?

Does State have any known labs with ISO-9000 certification that can provide to participants for us to call and have the required testing done?

Can we get 1-2 weeks extension as we have to make phone calls, send samples, do testing, and get reports before our submission deadline.

Please confirm if ISO 3rd party testing is needed on each size of an item or if testing is just needed on the size large, which is representative of the entire product line.

Does the testing have to have certain dating? Does the testing need to be refreshed every so often?

Answer: It is the responsibility of those responding to this RFP to have coordinated testing of their products, and MMCAP Infuse will not be able to provide guidance as to this process. No extensions to this RFP are currently planned; responses must be received by March 14, 2025, at 2pm Central to be considered.

5. Question: How should the technical proposal be formatted?

Can we type the answer to Section 3 Point 4 Technical Proposal Questionnaire in a separate document and then merge that information at the end of the pdf file provided?

Can we also attach as separate files in the email when submitting the proposal, the product catalog, other flyers presenting the products, white papers about incontinence, and other relevant educational materials? Or is it better not too?

Please clarify what MMCAP is seeking when it is asking for "Required business applications or forms to do business with Responder." Is this requesting documents that Authorized Distributors and Members would need to complete to work with the Responder?

Answer: Please be sure that your proposal clearly responds to all required sections of the RFP. Be sure that responses to each question can be clearly identified to the relevant question. If questions will not be addressed in-line, restating the question in your document may be necessary for clarity. Concise responses that directly address the questions at hand are preferable, and additional attachments that help illustrate your response may be included. "Required business applications or forms to do business with Responder" refers to any documentation that a Member would need to complete to source products with your company. This will vary by Responder and may include commitment forms if applicable per question 13 of the Technical Proposal.

6. Question: What will the details of the resulting contract(s) be?

It is for a two-year term, but what are the dates of that term? In other words, when does the 2-year agreement start and end?

Are we able to change pricing during the term of the contract? If so, what requirements must we meet?

Is there a termination clause? If so, what is it?

Will products awarded through this RFP become authorized MMCAP Infuse products under the Medical-Surgical contract?

The RFP states that the contract holder must extend the price to all MMCAP members and that it is possible that awardees who hold an active contract could have that contract amended to include the scope of this RFP. Would the awarded price structure under this contract impact pre-existing pricing on the current, active contract?

Answer: Effective dates of contracts will be dependent on when contracts are executed but are expected to take effect after current contracts expire. Current MMCAP Infuse contracts for incontinence products are set to expire as soon as September 30, 2025. After RFP evaluations are complete, manufacturers selected for awards will be contacted to begin contract negotiations. These negotiations will finalize terms, conditions, and pricing. Products included in these resulting contracts will be considered authorized “MMCAP Infuse products” in respect to authorized distributors, if the Response includes authorized distributors as an access channel for members. Pricing at the execution of the contract must extend to all MMCAP membership but would not apply to purchases made prior to the effective date of any agreements resulting from this RFP.

Section 2: The following information is an update to the content of the MMCAP Infuse RFP:

In this addendum, changes to pre-existing RFP language will be struck through for deletions on the Incontinence Products RFP:

STEP 3 – SIGN & SUBMIT YOUR RESPONSE

Documents making up a complete proposal

Section 3:

o Vendor Response o Technical Proposal o Required business applications or forms to do business with

Responder (submitted in PDF) Section 4:

o Incontinence Products Cost Proposal (submitted in the Cost Proposal Worksheet and separate from RFP Response)

Section 5:

o Responder Certifications Acknowledgment o Exhibit A State’s General Requirements (read and acknowledgement in

Section 2.6 of the RFP document) o Exhibit B Certification Regarding Lobbying (submit in PDF) o Exhibit C Workforce and Equal Pay Declaration Page (submit in PDF) o Exhibit D Veteran Owned Preference, if applicable (submit in PDF) o Exhibit E Reporting Requirements

4. Response Evaluation

Responses will first be reviewed to confirm compliance with the minimum qualifications identified above.

Responses that meet all the minimum qualifications will be further evaluated in accordance with the following:

Factors Percentage Technical Proposal:

• Company Overview 70%

Factors Percentage

• Product Quality Performance and

Testing

• Contract Management

• Customer Service

• Ordering Systems, Inventory and

Delivery Cost Proposal 30%

Preference Points (if applicable) Preference points are described under the State’s General Requirements and will be applied to the total score after points have been awarded.

• 12% Minnesota Certified Targeted Group/Economically Disadvantaged Preference

• 12% Veteran-owned Preference

• Minnesota Resident Vendor Preference

Responses will be evaluated by a team of MMCAP Infuse staff, MMCAP Infuse advisory board members, and/or staff from Members. Each evaluator will read all proposals that have passed all the minimum qualifications. MMCAP Infuse reserves the right to require a demonstration of capabilities and/or ordering systems via in-person meetings, webinar, or other such mechanism.

Any award that may result from this solicitation will be based upon the total accumulated points as established in the solicitation. MMCAP Infuse reserves the right to award this solicitation to a single Responder, or to multiple Responders, whichever is in the best interest of the State and MMCAP Infuse, providing each Responder is in compliance with all terms and conditions of the solicitation. MMCAP Infuse reserves the right to accept all or part of an offer, to reject all offers, to cancel the solicitation, or to re-issue the solicitation, whichever is in the best interest of the State and MMCAP Infuse. If a Responder with an active contract with MMCAP Infuse is an awarded bid as a result of this RFP, MMCAP Infuse reserves the right to amend the active contract to include the scope of this RFP rather than issue a brand-new document.