RFI1133 Treatment Foster Care.docx

BRAD LITTLE - Governor JULIET CHARRON - Director

Staci Phelan, Administrator Division of Management Services Bureau of Compliance 450 West State Street, 9th Floor

PO Box 83720

Boise, Idaho 83720-0036

PHONE 208-334-5578

FAX 208-334-5694

The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare Child, Youth, & Family Services, Youth Safety & Permanency Division (Department) has a requirement for information concerning the furnishing of services for Treatment Foster Care (TFC). Information obtained from the responses to this RFI may be used to refine the requirements for a formal Request for Proposal (RFP) which may be released at a later date, assist us in projecting a budget for acquiring the services, and also to identify potential vendors who may be interested in providing a competitive proposal.

It is important to note that this is a request for information only, not a solicitation. No award will be made based upon the information received.

I. Introduction and Background

TFC is a family home setting where treatment foster parents provide twenty-four (24) hour care, as well as therapeutic services and a high level of supervision. Services provided in TFC occur at a more intense level than provided in foster care and at a lower level than provided in residential care. The goal is to provide a step down for our youth in residential care who have been successful in their treatment and are ready for a family setting before moving to a general home or reuniting with their family. TFC may also be used to prevent a youth from being placed in a residential setting.

The Department has been successful in establishing and piloting a TFC program. Currently the Department has one (1) TFC contract that serves the Department’s Division of Behavioral Health (DBH) and Child Youth & Family Services (CYFS). Moving forward, the Department is intent on strategically expanding the program’s capacity and reach across the state. This will prioritize providers who can demonstrate a robust plan for recruitment and retention, a commitment to specialized TFC training and skill-based coaching for TFC parents to meet complex youth needs and ensuring model fidelity to drive sustained clinical and long-term positive outcomes for our youth.

II. Description of Items or Service Required

Services provided in TFC are at a more intense level than provided at home or in foster care and at a lower level than provided in residential care. Services may include the following: participation in the development and implementation of the child’s treatment plan, behavior modification, community supports, crisis intervention, documentation of services and the child’s behavior, participation as a member of a multi-disciplinary team, and transportation. Placement into a treatment foster home for children in the custody of the Department under the purview of the Child Protective Act, is based on the documented needs of the child, the inability of less restrictive settings to meet the child’s needs, and the clinical judgment of the Department.

TFC providers are required to meet all foster family licensure requirements, complete Department-approved TFC initial training, possess training or experience related to working with children or youth with mental illness or behavior disorders, and must complete ongoing annual training. The Department needs a provider that can self-monitor for fidelity to the TFC model and training. This would include fidelity to standards for the TFC model and continuing to increase competency in skills for TFC parents to meet the complex needs of youth in their homes.

III. Requested information It is requested that interested vendors provide the following information:

1. Briefly describe your company, services, history, ownership, financial information, and other information you deem relevant. Provide a contact person’s name, telephone number and email address for any clarifications.

2. Is your organization capable of or interested in furnishing the items or services described in this RFI? Please describe both your history of furnishing services and your capabilities for furnishing them.

3. What evidence-based treatment model would your organization use to provide these services and what experience does your organization have using the treatment model?

4. What fidelity monitoring methods does your organization use/would use to ensure treatment efficacy?

5. What issues do you feel need to be addressed in order to ensure a successful acquisition of these services or in preparation of an RFP?

6. From your experience in providing these services, what lessons learned can you share with us?

7. What recruitment techniques would you utilize to secure families to become TFC providers?

8. What training model would you use to ensure initial and ongoing training of TFC providers?

9. How do you/would you support TFC providers and parents in their ongoing execution of the treatment model and skill development?

10. What support do/would TFC parents receive during the duration of youth placements?

11. What resources would you need to support TFC parents in continued skill development, to adequately support and build skills in youth placed in their home?

12. What retention efforts would your agency utilize to maintain TFC providers including what agency supports would be provided to the TFC providers?

13. Cost estimate (This is a cost estimate only. Any information provided will be used to assist us in developing a budget for the acquisition. You will not be held to any information or prices provided.):

a. What services need to be provided on a one (1)-time basis? What is the estimated cost of each?

b. What services need to be provided on an on-going basis? What is the estimated cost of each?

c. Are there any other services which will affect pricing? What is the estimated cost of each?

d. How long do you estimate that it will take to provide each of the services describe in this RFI? What issues may affect the delivery or needs to be addressed in the preparation of an RFP?

IV. Terms and Conditions A. All material submitted in response to this RFI becomes the property of the Department and will not be returned to the responding vendor.

B. At the sole discretion of the Department the information provided may be used for the following purposes:

1. Identifying issues and refining the requirements for a solicitation which may be released at a later date.

2. Assisting in projecting a budget for acquiring the services.

3. Identifying potential vendors who may be interested in providing a future competitive proposal.

C. The Idaho Public Records Act, Idaho Code Title 74, allows the open inspection and copying of public records. Public records include any writing containing information relating to the conduct or administration of the public's business prepared, owned, used, or retained by a state or local agency regardless of the physical form or character. All, or most, of the information contained in your response will be a public record and as such will be subject to disclosure under the public records law. Certain exemptions from disclosure can apply, one of which may be for “trade secrets” as defined in the Idaho Public Records Act, Idaho Code Section 74-107, a copy of which is available for viewing on-line at: https://legislature.idaho.gov/statutesrules/idstat/Title74/T74CH1/SECT74-107/.

1. Trade secrets include a formula, pattern, compilation, program, computer program, device, method, technique or process that derives economic value, actual or potential, from not being generally known to, and not being readily ascertainable by proper means by other persons and is subject to the efforts that are reasonable under the circumstances to maintain its secrecy.

2. If you consider any element of your response to be a trade secret, or otherwise protected from disclosure, you must so indicate by marking each page of the pertinent document. Include the specific basis for your position that it be treated as exempt from disclosure.

3. Marking your response as exempt is not acceptable or in accordance with the Public Records Act and will not be honored. In addition, a legend or statement on one (1) page that all or substantially all of the response is exempt from disclosure is not acceptable or in accordance with the Public Records Act and will not be honored. Prices quoted in your response are not a trade secret.

4. The Department, to the extent allowed by law and in accordance with these terms and conditions will honor a designation of nondisclosure. You will be required to defend any claim of trade secret or other basis for nondisclosure in the event of an administrative or judicial challenge to the Department’s nondisclosure. Any questions regarding the applicability of the Public Records Law should be addressed to the Department or should be presented to your own legal counsel - prior to submission.

D. THIS IS NOT A BID, NO AWARD WILL BE MADE.

V. Address for Responses

If you are interested in providing any of the information requested in this RFI, please submit your written response by close of business Wednesday, December 31, 2025, to:

*Responses will only be accepted by e-mail.*

**Do Not Submit Your Response Through IPRO/Luma - the eprocurement system.**

Idaho Dept of Health & Welfare Attention: (RFI1133) Kristin Perry Email: kristin.perry@dhw.idaho.gov Telephone: 208-334-5603 image1.jpeg