PDAC RFP_Amendment 2.doc

RFP-CMS-2007-0019 – Pricing, Data Analysis, and Coding (PDAC) Request For Proposal (RFP)

Amendment 000002

Amendment 000002:

1.) Section L.1, PROCURMENT TIMELINE, is replaced as follows (changes in bold):

PROCUREMENT TIMELINE:

Request for Proposal (RFP) Released:

March 12, 2008

Questions Due:

March 20, 2008

Answers Issued:

March 28, 2008 (estimated)

Notice of Intent to Submit Proposals:

April 1, 2008

Technical & Business Proposals

(Written) Due:

April 18, 2008 (NLT 12:00 pm)

Oral Presentations Begin:

April 28, 2008 Oral Presentations End:

May 2, 2008 Award of Contract:

May 16, 2008

2.) Section L.10(d), GENERAL INSTRUCTION, Intent to Submit a Proposal is replaced as follows (changes in bold):

Intent to Submit a Proposal: The Offeror shall indicate its intent to submit a proposal for the PDAC MAC contract no later than Close of Business on April 1, 2008. This notice shall be submitted via e-mail to David Wetherson, Contract Specialist, at david.wetherson@cms.hhs.gov. Oral presentations shall be scheduled when CMS is notified of the Offeror's intent to submit a proposal. Oral presentations are anticipated to begin April 28, 2008.

NOTE: Please be advised that intent to submit a proposal is not binding on the Offeror and is for planning/scheduling purposes only. In addition, an Offeror that submits a negative intent to bid response is not precluded from actually submitting a proposal. However, if you submit intent to bid and then later decide that you will not be submitting a proposal, please email David Wetherson to let him know so that he can make scheduling adjustments. This will allow CMS to efficiently schedule oral presentations and maximize the best use of the limited time available to make award of the PDAC MAC contract.

3.) Section L.15(b), ORAL PRESENTATIONS, Schedule is replaced as follows (changes in bold):

Schedule: It is anticipated oral presentations will begin on or about April 28, 2008. The Government reserves the right to reschedule any offeror’s presentation at the discretion of the Contracting Officer. The Contracting Officer will schedule the oral presentations after receipt of proposals. The Offeror will be notified by electronic mail of the scheduled date, time and location of its presentation. Oral presentations are not subject to the rules for the late submission of proposals in FAR 52.215-1. However, if the offeror, due to its own fault, is delayed in starting its oral presentation at the allotted time, the time period commences at the appointed time. Offeror delays go against the allotted time period. For example, if an offeror is scheduled to begin its 2 hour presentation at 8:00 a.m. and is delayed in starting because of traffic or doesn’t allocate sufficient time for passing through building security, etc, and does not begin until 8:15 a.m., the offeror will have 1 hour and 45 minutes to complete its oral presentation.

(End of RFP Changes – Questions & Answers Provided Below)

Questions and Answers:

Below are Answers to the eight (8) Questions that were not answered in PDAC Amendment 1. The original numbering is maintained in order for CMS and Offerors to be able to better track the full list of Q&A’s.

There were three (3) additional Questions submitted after PDAC Amendment 1 was released. The Questions and Answers to these are included below as # 72, 73, and 74.

In addition, there is a clarification listed below to prior Q&A #14.

Answers To Prior Questions:

Reference – Statement of Work (Section C) 22.) SOW E.1.2 Product Testing: The requirement states the Contractor shall be responsible for “evaluating and testing certain DMEPOS products against standards and determinations of compliance as approved by CMS” and within the time line prescribed by CMS. Please provide clarification on the phrase "evaluating and testing certain DMEPOS products against standards and determinations of compliance as approved by CMS".

Answer: The current SADMERC currently only performs testing for wheelchair cushions. CMS expects that in the future, the PDAC will expand this process. No further information is available at this time as products and standards have not yet been developed.

25.) SOW E.2.5.1.j Telephone Standards, Toll Free Network Services: The requirements states Contractor operations apply to the provisions outlined in IOM Pub 100-09, Chapter 6, Section 30.2. (Telephone Services). Do all provisions outlined in Section 30.2 apply or only those relating to Toll Free Networks and FTS 2001 support? Specifically, will we be required to adhere to the QCM program as stated in 30.2.7.1, and are we required to participate in all QCM national and regional calibration sessions as stated in 30.2.7.2?

Answer: The PDAC will only be subject to Section 30.2 as it relates to FTS 2001 support. The PDAC will not be subject to the QCM program referenced in 30.2.7.1 and 30.2.7.2 relating to the QCM program.

26.) SOW E.2.5.2 Written Correspondence: The SOW requirement states all written inquires are to be processed in accordance with the guidelines and timeframes provided in the IOM Pub 100-09, Chapter 6, Section 30.3 (Contractor Guidelines for Written Inquiries). Do all provisions outlined in Section 30.3 apply? Specifically, will we be required to meet the requirements and performance standards as set forth in the Quality Written Correspondence Monitoring (QWCM) program?

Answer: IOM Pub 100-09, Chapter 6, Section 30.3 through 30.3.4 provides general guidelines and timeframes the PDAC must follow. Please note that these sections also make reference to other areas (i.e. claims, appeals, etc) that are not applicable to the PDAC. However, the PDAC will not be required to implement the AWCM program specified in Sections 30.3.6.1 and 30.3.6.2 of the IOM.

43.) Section E.1.2, Product Testing; The Contractor shall be responsible for evaluating and testing certain DMEPOS products against standards and determinations of compliance as approved by CMS and within the time line prescribed by CMS. The Contractor shall consult with the DME MACs, DME PSCs and CMS regarding which products may be subject to evaluation and testing. The process and results of all product testing will be documented and maintained by the Contractor.

What is the approximate workload associated with this activity?

Answer: As stated in Question 22, the SADMERC only performs testing for wheelchair cushions. Workload data is not available at this time for wheelchair cushions. However, the SADMERC does currently perform an evaluation of all products it receives for code verification. Future workload has not been developed and therefore cannot be projected at this time.

44.) Section E.3.2, NDC – HCPCS Crosswalk; The Contractor shall update and maintain a process/system to crosswalk the NDC codes to the appropriate HCPCS code. This will include the conversion factors that will be used to price the applicable billings to allow processing of claims filed using the NCPDP format. As needed, the Contractor shall request the addition, revision or deletion of HCPCS codes to accommodate the new NDCs as published in Redbook. The update of each HCPCS drug code applicable to DME MAC billing will be completed on a monthly basis. The crosswalk files will be delivered to CMS not later than the 5th day of each month. The files will be available for download (via NDM) by the DME MACs, DME PSCs, and the Shared Systems Maintainers. The Shared Systems Maintainer will provide the flat file format that is appropriate to their system. The Contractor shall post the crosswalk on its web site (see E.6.3. of this SOW).

With respect to the NDC-HCPCS Crosswalk file currently maintained by Palmetto GBA, which data elements are required for the PDAC (i.e., there are a number of data elements that are not used by the DME MACs that may not need to be included in the future). Does the scope of the crosswalk include drugs that are not processed by the DME MACs? Does the crosswalk have a greater use than just DME MAC Medicare?

At this time, all data elements on the current NDC-HCPCS Crosswalk will continue to be required. The NDC-HCPCS Crosswalk was designed for use by suppliers who bill Medicare. However, the Crosswalk is accessible on the internet and may be used by other entities.

Is the mainframe software database structure VSAM, DB2, IMS, or MXG?

No mainframe database is used for the NDC-HCPCS crosswalk file. An Excel spreadsheet is provided.

Answer: Provided after each bullet listed in above question.

55.) SOW Section E.6.2 Data Warehouse

Is the job/code for the monthly data warehouse load to be provided?

Answer: The programming code for data checking and data extract could be provided. However, it is specific to Palmetto GBA’s design and data warehouse environment.

62.) SOW Section E.6.3 Web Technology Does the WebI application, that requires ID and password authentication, require the CMS approved three-tier architecture, or is access via MDCN sufficient security in addition to the ID and password?

Answer: CMS requires that a CMS-approved three-tier architecture be employed in meeting this requirement. CMS notes that the offeror can subcontract the hosting for this function to an entity that meets CMS’s 3-tier architecture requirement. In particular, the Enterprise Data Centers referenced under section D.1.1. of the statement of work meet this requirement.

Reference – Solicitation Attachment J-2 Government Furnished Materials 65.) Government Furnished Materials The Government Furnished Materials listing includes Web based Intelligence (WebI). Please clarify what is included in this material. Does this mean that the current WebI web based product will transition, including Business Objects and all associated logic, established reports and report query capabilities? Does this transition include the Business Objects Enterprise License?

Answer: As previously stated, WebI is a Business Objects program and will not be transitioned. Only the data, reports, etc. currently residing in WebI will be transitioned. However, if the winning Offeror wishes to utilize WebI, it may purchase the software and license to do so.

Answers To New Questions:

Reference – PDAC Amendment 1 72.) In Amendment 1 you included the incumbent contract with Palmetto, GBA (HCFA-500-93-BPO-3). I would like to know if this program is in any way related to contract HHSM-500-2006-M0003Z with Palmetto for Durable Medical Equipment (DME) Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC).

Answer: As the result of a protest, the contract was terminated and the Pricing, Data Analysis, and Coding work is being competed under this new solicitation (RFP-CMS-2007-0019).

73.) Amendment 0001 to RFP-CMS-2007-0019 – Pricing, Data Analysis, and Coding (PDAC) Request For Proposal (RFP), in the answer to question 62, states that the answer will be provided in the next solicitation amendment. Can you please provide the anticipated date for the next amendment to RFP-CMS-2007-0019?

Answer: All outstanding Questions from Amendment 1 and the three new questions received after Amendment 1 was posted are answered in this Amendment (#2).

74.) We have a question regarding Amendment 000001, released 03/28/2008, of RFP-CMS-2007-0019. The description of the amendment listed in the SF30 indicates the due date for the Technical and Business Proposals (Written) is moving from 4/11/08 to 4/18/08. Please confirm that the new due date includes Volume III - Conflict of Interest and Compliance Program also.

Answer: The Proposal due date extension listed in Amendment 1 changed the due date from 4/11/08 to 4/18/08. To confirm, the new due date for Volume 1 - Technical Proposal, Volume 2 - Business Proposal, and Volume 3 - Conflict of Interest and Compliance Program is 4/18/08.

Clarification To Prior Q&A:

· The Answer to Question #14 provided in PDAC Amendment 1 stated: CMS does not have a comparison of identical workload data elements for prior years. However, indicators reveal there has not been a large increase/decrease in workload over the past two years. Potential offerors may wish to include a four percent increase per year in workload for the PDAC. The Workload Data will be revised to reflect these projections in the next solicitation amendment.

NOTE: It has been determined that the original ATTACHMENT J-10 WORKLOAD DATA will not be revised. Offerors should assume a 4% increase per year in workload for the PDAC with ATTACHMENT J-10 WORKLOAD DATA being the workload amounts to be used in Proposal pricing for the Base Year.