RFP-CMS-2010-0004_DME MAC Juris A RFP Q As_ 01_28_10.xls
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- DME MAC Jurisdiction A Federal contract opportunity
- Solicitation number
- RFP-CMS-2010-0004
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Miscellaneous
| DME A RFP Questions from Industry - RFP Miscellaneous | |||
| ID | Section | Question | Answer/Action |
| MISC1 | General | Will CMS extend the proposal due date from on or before February 2, 2010 by 2:00pm EST to on or before February 16, 2010 by 2:00pm EST (2 weeks)? | Extension has been given for proposal submission be extended to February 4, 2010, 2:00 EST (local prevailing time). |
&L&D&CJURISDICTION A
&L&9RFP-CMS-2010-0004&C&9&A&R&9&P
Section C
| DME A RFP Questions from Industry - Section C | |||
| ID | Section | Question | Answer/Action |
| C1 | SOW Section 1.1.1 | Conflicting information regarding submission of an Implementation Project Plan; SOW Section 1.1.1 - The contractor shall submit the Implementation Project Plan as part of its proposal; Section B thru M - No mention of submitting an Implementation Project Plan; Contractor intends to not submit an Implementation Project Plan as part of its proposal, as instructed in Section B thru M. Please confirm. | Instructions were provided in Amendment 000001 and Amendment 000002, revised Implementation Handbook and SOW. Offerors do not have to submit an Implementation Project Plan as part of their proposal. |
| C3 | SOW Section B.11 | SOW B.11 page 24… “The Medical Director shall be fully dedicated.” |
| Question: Can CMS clarify if the Medical Director has to be either fully dedicated to each DME MAC jurisdiction or fully dedicated to the Medicare lines of business? | The Medical Director shall be fully dedicated to the DME MAC. Any position that is defined as being fully dedicated to the DME MAC shall be interpreted as fully dedicated to the one specific DME MAC contract identified under this solicitation. This does not permit the use of the same Key Personnel across multiple Medicare contracts. | ||
| C4 | SOW Section D.2.1.1 | SOW D.2.1.1 page 82…Accepting Redetermination Requests… “…acknowledge the request for redetermination within 14 calendar days of receipt of the request in…mailroom” |
| Question: Please confirm that the standard for acknowledgement of Redetermination Requests is within 14 calendar days of receipt of request in the mailroom. | Yes, the standard for acknowledgement of Redetermination Requests is within 14 calendar days of receipt of request in the mailroom. | ||
| C5 | SOW Section D.2.6.2 | SOW D.2.6.2 page 89… Tracking Appeals Data in the MAS… “…enter data into the MAS required fields as provided in Attachment A…” |
| Question: We were unable to find Attachment A. Could CMS direct us to the Attachment A location? | This requirement has been removed from the SOW. See the SOW in Amendment 000002. | ||
| C6 | SOW Section C.1.B.5 | C.1 STATEMENT OF WORK |
B. Key Personnel Requirements
5. Program Safeguard Contractor (PSC) and Zone Program Integrity Contractor (ZPIC) Liaison
Work Experience A minimum of 3 years experience with Medicare that demonstrates knowledge of the Medicare program. Knowledge of Medicare Parts A and B and benefit integrity is preferred.
| As a point of clarification, please confirm CMS’ preference that this role has knowledge of Medicare Parts A and B since this solicitation is focused on DME. | SOW Section B.5 was revised to indicate that "Knowledge of DMEPOS Medicare requirements and benefit integrity is preferred." | ||
| C7 | SOW Section 2.6.5 | Section #/Title: Attachment J-01 SOW, Section 2.6.5 Documents Imaging in MAS |
Page: 90
| Question: In Section 2.6.5 it outlines the technical requirements to support sending image data to MAS. If a contractor already has a document management imaging system, is it acceptable to send an index file and associated industry standard TIFF image to the MAS system over the CMSnet, using NDM, to meet this requirement? Are there requirements associated with times/frequencies in which image data should be sent to the MAS? | This requirement has been removed from the SOW. See revised SOW in Amendment 000002. | |||
| C8 | SOW - General | The title page of the SOW provided with this RFP denotes that it is for the procurement of DME MAC Jurisdictions A & B. Another SOW was provided under RFP-CMS-2010-0005 for Jurisdiction B but is identified on its title page as the SOW for Jurisdiction A. Because there are some textual differences between the two SOWs, can CMS confirm that the SOW provided with RFP-CMS-2010-0004 is the correct SOW for Jurisdiction A? | The correct SOW was provided for Jurisdiction A. A revised SOW is provided with Amendment 000002. | |
| C9 | SOW Section B.10 | B.10 Contract Administrator. The SOW provides that for the Key Personnel position of Contract Administrator the person occupying that position is not required to be fully dedicated to the DME MAC but must be dedicated to Medicare business lines. It further provides that the Contract Administrator have five years of direct experience administering federal government contracts in accordance with the Federal Acquisition Regulations. Since none of the other MAC contracts require that five year experience limitation and where offerors have other MAC contracts with an experienced Contract Administrator dedicated to the Medicare lines of business, it is requested that CMS eliminate, or at least reduce, the five year requirement. It should be pointed out that none of the MAC contracts (DME or A/B) have yet been in existence for five years, and since the prior legacy Medicare contracts did not require such a position, a five year requirement would seem to be an overly onerous requirement. | See the revised SOW in Amendment 000002. The requirements for SOW Section B.10, Contract Administrator, have been revised to read, "Five years of direct experience administering contracts in accordance with the FAR may be substituted for education requirements." | |
| C10 | SOW Section 2.1 | 1. SOW Section 2.1 Pages 32-34 | ||
| Question: Will the contractor be provided the incumbent’s non-base elements – such as. programs, JCL, etc.-- so they could install as is currently running versus developing new jobs? | For proposal purposes offerors need to assume that non-base elements will not be provided by the incumbent. During the implementation, CMS reserves its available rights to require the incumbent to provide it's non-base elements to the incoming contractor. | |||
| C12 | SOW Section 2.1 | SOW Section 2.1 Page 32 States …. The EDC will also provide each DME MAC with two designated regions, both with CICS support: one for production, and one for User Acceptance Testing (UAT). | ||
| Question: Would CMS please clarify how the regions are typically transferred to the new DME contractor? In other words, are new regions created and the workload/files transferred with new workload numbers? | CMS will create a new production and UAT region. CMS will assign new workload numbers to the DME MAC. Additional information will be provided after contract award. | |||
| C14 | SOW Section D.5.3.1 | SOW Section D.5.3.1, Page 102 | ||
| Question: Are there any Mainframe CICS screens developed specifically for the IVR? | No mainframe CICS screens have been developed for use with the IVR. | |||
| C15 | SOW Section C.1.1.2.1 | SOW Section C.1.1.2.1, Page 67, 68 |
Question: Are the current images from the incumbent going to be transferred.
Question: If so, what is the current imaging solution?
Question: What is the current stored image format?
Question: What field(s) are the current images indexed by?
| Question: How many documents are imaged per day? | Images from the outgoing contractor will be transferred to the incoming contractor. For proposal purposes, offerors shall assume that the format of these images are compatible with their systems. Additional information regarding the images from the outgoing contractor will be provided after contract award and during the implementation period. | ||
| C16 | SOW 5.2 | Section J-01, 5.2 Provider Contact Center, Page. 96 states….The contractor shall establish and maintain a PCC that handles telephone, written (letters, email, fax) and walk-in inquiries in accordance with IOM Pub. 100-9, Chapter 6 | |
| Question: Does this indicate that a requirement exists for an in-jurisdiction office? | No, there is no requirement for an in-jurisdiction office. The direction in the SOW directs a contractor to follow IOM 100-9 Chapter 6 in dealing with any provider that shows up in-person at a contractor's site. | ||
| C17 | SOW C.2.3 | SOW Section C.2.3, Page 37 | |
| Question: Regarding the DME MAC’s role around obtaining, reading and storing historical electronic files, need to know type, format, and storage requirements of these files. | For proposal purposes, offerors shall assume that historical electronic file formats are compatible with their systems. Additional information will be provided after contract award and during the implementation period. | ||
| C19 | SOW F.1.1.1 | SOW Section F.1.1.1, NSC MAC Page 118 | |
| Question: Assuming the NSC MAC is like the provider enrollment function, could CMS clarify the “exchanges” between the DME MAC and NSC MAC? Are these done through the VMS from the EDC or is there some sort of direct exchange of data/files between DME MAC and NSC MAC? If between the DME MAC and NSC MAC, could CMS provide the type, format, and storage requirements? | The NSC MAC will be entering supplier enrollment data into PECOS. All DMEPOS supplier data is expected to be housed in PECOS effective July 1, 2010. Data exchanges will be between PECOS and the DME MACs. Data will be sent from PECOS to the CMS data center. The EDC will distibute the data to the DME MACs. | ||
| C20 | SOW F.1.1.1 | SOW Section F.1.1.1, NSC MAC Page 118 | |
| Question: Could CMS clarify the “telecommunications system” referred to under bullet 3? Is this CMSNet? | With the transition of all DMEPOS supplier data to PECOS beginning in July 2010, the DME MACs will no longer send alert indicators electronically to PECOS or the NSC. | ||
| C21 | SOW F.1.1.1 | SOW Section F.1.1.1, NSC MAC Page 118 | |
| Question: Could CMS clarify the ‘master file’ referred to under bullet 12 regarding the tracking of supplier start/stop effective and revocation/inactivation dates and how the contractor is expected to use this file? | The file referred to is the VMS Provider File; the contractor is expected to use the file in accordance with existing (and future) CMS instructions. |
&L&D&CJURISDICTION A
&L&9RFP-CMS-2010-0004&C&9&A&R&9&P
Section H
| DME A RFP Questions from Industry - Section H | |||
| ID | Section | Question | Answer/Action |
| H1 | H.20 Systems of Records | Solicitation H.20 page 42… “Medicare Multi-Carrier Claims System (MCS)…” |
SOW D.1.2 1.2.1 Run Systems page 70… “…Contractor shall process DME claims using the VMS….”
| Request: The list of Systems of Records includes MCS, but does not include VMS, which is cited in the SOW paragraph D.1.2 subparagraph 1.2.1. Please clarify. | The contractor shall process DME claims using the VMS system. However, VMS is not considered a “system of record” and therefore does not have a corresponding number In the Federal Register. The RFP should not include the reference to MCS. See Amendment 000002. | ||
| H3 | H.3 Conflict of Interest | Section H.3 Conflict of Interest, Pages 26 through 30 Throughout section H.3 there are paragraph reference points, such as: |
Page 26 states “paragraph H.3.c.”
Page 27 states “paragraph H.3.c.2.c” Page 28 states “paragraph H.3.d.2”
| Question: Would CMS please clarify the use of all paragraph reference points throughout section H.3. | See Amendment 000002. The clause has been revised to reflect the proper numbering format. | ||
| H4 | H.17 | RFP Section H17 Page 38 and Section L.11 item h Page 87 |
Page 38 states contractor is responsible for records retention as defined in IOM Pub 100-01, Chapter 7, Section 30 – however, in an effort to reduce associated costs for storing Medicare documents….the DOJ has agreed that electronic imaging is an acceptable method of storage and that as long as specific conditions are met, contractors can destroy the paper documents. Page 87 states that the contractor for Jurisdiction A shall assume 33,673 cubic feet of file storage for Medicare records but adds no exception if an image storage solution is included.
| Question: Would CMS please clarify the record retention requirements. | The estimates provided are based on current hard copy files that are being stored in each Jurisdiction. If an offeror has a different approach, the offeror may provide the details in their proposal. | ||
| H5 | H.17 | Section H.17 of the RFP refers to IOM Pub. 100-01, Chapter 7, Section 30. This section states that the records must be stored in NARA-compliant facilities by October 1, 2009. In July 2009, CMS instructed contractors to stop all activities related to the transfer of Medicare records to NARA-compliant facilities until further notice. |
Question: Was this instruction issued to DME MACs as well? For the contract awarded under this solicitation, NARA compliance will be enforced.
&L&D&CJURISDICTION A
&L&9RFP-CMS-2010-0004&C&9&A&R&9&P
Section I
| DME A RFP Questions from Industry - Section I | |||
| ID | Section | Question | Answer/Action |
| I1 | Section I - Contract Clauses | There are three provisions that relate to marking of proposals. They include: |
I.1 FAR 52.252-2 CLAUSES INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE (FEB 1998)
52.227-23 - Rights to Proposal Data (Technical) (Jun 1987) Except for data contained on pages _____, it is agreed that as a condition of award of this contract, and notwithstanding the conditions of any notice appearing thereon, the Government shall have unlimited rights (as defined in the “Rights in Data -- General” clause contained in this contract) in and to the technical data contained in the proposal dated ____________, upon which this contract is based.
I.2 DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES ACQUISITION REGULATIONS (HHSAR)
352.215-1 Instructions to Offerors--Competitive acquisition (Jan 2006)
(e) (2) In addition, the offeror must mark each page of data it wishes to restrict with the following statement:
‘‘Use or disclosure of data contained on this page is subject to the restriction on the cover sheet of this proposal or quotation.’’ L.3 FAR 52.215-1 INSTRUCTIONS TO OFFERORS – COMPETITIVE ACQUISITION (JAN 2004), Alternate I (Oct 1997) p.72 - (8) (e) (2) Mark each sheet of data it wishes to restrict with the following legend: Use or disclosure of data contained on this sheet is subject to the restriction on the title page of this proposal.
| These requirements contemplate different methodologies for marking proposal pages. Does CMS intend for offerors to mark in accordance with all three requirements or will CMS provide some clarifying guidance? | Please mark your proposal in accordace with the HHSAR Clause 352.215-1. | ||
| I2 | Section I | Section I |
52.228-7 Insurance -- Liability to Third Persons (MAR (1996)
352.228-7 INSURANCE – LIABILITY TO THIRD PERSONS (DEC 1991)
| Our quick read of both clauses indicate that they are essentially the same. Did CMS intend to include both clauses? | The correct clause is HHSAR 352.228-7 (DEC 1991), in lieu of FAR Clause 52.228-7. See Amendment 000002. | |||
| I3 | Section I | We expected the inclusion of FAR 52.243-7 entitled NOTIFICATION OF CHANGES (APR 84) in Section I. Was this an oversight or did CMS intend to omit this FAR clause? If so, why? | FAR Clause 52.243-7 is not applicable to this type of contract. Per FAR 43.107, this clause is "available for use primarily in negotiated research and development or supply contracts for the acquisition of major weapon systems or principal subsystems." |
&L&D&CJURISDICTION A
&L&9RFP-CMS-2010-0004&C&9&A&R&9&P
Section J
| DME A RFP Questions from Industry - Section J | |||
| ID | Section | Question | Answer/Action |
| J1 | J-11, J-12, J-13, J-14, J-15 Cost Proposal templates | Attachments – J-11, J-12, J-13, J-14, J-15 Cost Proposal Templates |
| Question: Using sample data, we found inaccuracies in the referenced attachment formulas. How does CMS prefer the contractors to address the inaccuracies (e.g. we fix the errors; we wait for CMS to provide new and updated spreadsheets; etc.)? | Offerors may adjust formulas within the CLIN templates to ensure accuracy in its cost proposal. | ||
| J2 | J-11, J-12, J-13, J-14, J-15 Cost Proposal templates | Attachments – J-11, J-12, J-13, J-14, J-15 Cost Proposal Templates |
| Question: When opening the referenced Cost Proposal Templates in Excel, we received a Security warning, that “the automatic update of links have been disabled.” When we try to open the link, Excel gives us an error message that the referenced spreadsheet could not be found. Should contractors ignore the warning and use spreadsheets as is, or will CMS provide the missing file? | See Amendment 000002. Revised Cost proposal Templates have been attached in Windows 2003 version (.xls). Offerors may adjust those things within the spreadsheets needed to ensure accuracy in its business proposal. If Offerors still receive "warnings," continue to use the spreadsheets and ignore the "warnings.” | ||
| J3 | J-11, J-12, J-13, J-14, J-15 Cost Proposal templates | Attachments – J-11, J-12, J-13, J-14, J-15 Cost Proposal Templates |
Question: Within the J-10 Attachment for Implementation, there are worksheets included for both Travel and ODCs. Is the government planning to include the Travel and ODCs worksheets within Attachment J-11, J-12, J-13, J14 and J-15 Excel Templates? See Amendments 000001 and 000002. Offerors shall complete Attachment J-25, provided with Amendment 000001, for all CLINs, separate from the cost proposal template. Attachment J-25 shall be submitted as part of Business Proposal Volume IIA, Tab B.
Revised Cost Templates are provided in Amendment 000002 to correct ODC information.
J4 J-10, J-11, J-12, J-13, J-14, J-15 Cost Proposal templates Reference: Attachments J-10, J-11, J-12, J-13, J-14, and J-15 Cost Proposal Templates SLIN000XAC includes SOW reference C.5.26.5
| Request:. We believe this reference should be C.5.6.5. Please confirm. | The template for SLIN 000XAC within all CLINs reflecting the SOW reference C.5.26.5 shall be renamed C.5.6.5, Other RAC Support Activities. Offerors should change the title on the templates if you choose not to use the revised Cost Templates provided in Amendment 000002. | ||
| J6 | J-02 Deliverable Schedule | Section #/Title: Attachment J-02 Deliverable Schedule |
Page: 9
| Question: There are three Implementation Deliverables noted in the J-02 Deliverable Schedule (items BY-13-01, 02, 03). In the Implementation Handbook (J-19), there are several documents and plans that are required to be submitted to CMS and other stakeholders throughout the transition. Are the items in the Implementation Handbook considered to be formal deliverables that should be added to the DME MAC Deliverable Schedule, and therefore included in the costing for this RFP? | See Amendment 000002. A revised Deliverable Schedule has been provided to include Implementation Deliverables. | |||
| J7 | J-09 Cost Proposal Instructions | In attachment J-09 Cost Proposal Instructions, in instruction number 3 CMS instructs the offeror to only complete the white cells in attachments J-06, J-07, J-08, J-09, and J-10. Does CMS mean it should be attachments J-10, J-11, J-12, J13, J-14, J-15, and J16? | Yes, all white cells shall be completed for Attachments J-10, J-11, J-12, J-13, J-14, J-15, and J-16. | |
| J8 | J-01A MAC Shared System Base and Non-Base Functions | SOW Attachment J-01A, Payment Safeguards Page 7 | ||
| Question: Could CMS explain the PIMB software and who is expected to use it and how? | The PIMB software allows contractors to draw a prospective (i.e., before payment) stratified random sample that is representative of a selected sampling frame. It can be used to support requests from PSCs and ZPICs to review a sample of claims for a particular provider (or group of providers) or a particular type of service or a particularly service (or group of services). The module allows selection of any proportion of claims for any period. The module works the same way that the CERT sampling module works. The module may also be used for prepayment medical review to select a sample on a prospective basis. | |||
| J9 | J-01A MAC Shared System Base and Non-Base Functions | Attachment J-01A, Pages 1-7, General Question | ||
| Question: Could CMS please clarify if CA View to be used? If so, is it to be used for base and/or non-base output? Is its use mandatory or can contractors propose to use an alternative? | CA View is provided by the EDC to the contractor, and currently all four of the DME MACs use CA view for both base and non-base output. CA View is the only report viewing software supplied by the EDC. However, the EDC will support another tool if proposed by an offeror. |
&L&D&CJURISDICTION A
&L&9RFP-CMS-2010-0004&C&9&A&R&9&P
Section L
| DME A RFP Questions from Industry - Section L | |||
| ID | Section | Question | Answer/Action |
| L1 | L.15; L.16; Attach. J09 Instructions | The following areas are referenced in the RFP regarding printing the cost templates. |
• Attach J09 Instructions for printing cost templates
• Last line on this page states "The offeror shall not submit hard copies of these documents."
• Section L.15 Volume II - Business Proposal Instructions
• (1) Volume IIA Business Proposal Cost Templates (CD-ROM)
• Section L.16 General Business Proposal Instructions
• a. Volume IIA Business Cost Template Instructions
• First sentence: "The business proposal cost spreadsheets must be readable."
• Last sentence in two paragraphs down: "The business proposal spreadsheets shall also be provided on CD-ROM."
| Please confirm if cost templates are required to be printed in hard copy form and on CD-ROM or ONLY on CD-ROM. | See Amendment 000001. Yes, hard copies of the Business Proposal are required along with the CD-ROM format. | ||
| L2 | L.11 | Section L.11 Proposal Assumptions - Workloads |
Claims - Under the PM Bills / Claims workloads there is a workload titled, Claims Backlog - Pending Claims. Please define this workload.
Appeals - Under the PM Appeals workloads, there is a workload titled Appeals Backlog - Pending Redeterminations. Please define this workload. Please advise as to why the "pending" volume is greater than the annual volume.
Provider Inquiry - Under the PM Provider Inquiries section, there is a workload titled Inquiries Backlog - Written Correspondence Pending. Please define this workload.
| Appeals - Under the PM Appeals sections there are a number of workloads listed. Please specify if the workload listed is expressed in Claims volume or Case volume. | See Amendment 000001. Revised Proposal Assumptions have been provided. | ||
| L3 | L.16, a. | Section L.16, a. Volume IIA - business proposal cost template instructions: | |
| • 5. Indirect Rates: Second to the last sentence states "At this time, please provide indirect rates only that will be applied during the time of request for Revised Final Proposal Revision." Please confirm meaning of this sentence. | The referenced sentence was deleted. See Amendment 000002. | ||
| L4 | L.11.e | Change Requests (p 86, section L.11.e). |
Change Requests, section L.11.e – The time estimates for Change Requests in section L.11.e do not correlate with the Change Management Process Requirements of the SOW:
L.11.e Draft CRs – 10,925 hrs (475 * 23) Final w/Shared System changes – 12,250 (245 * 50) Final w-out/Shared System changes – 9,200 (115 * 80)
| Total CR hours – 32,375 hrs. | This section was revised. See Amendment 000002. | ||
| L5 | L.11 Workloads | Section L.11 Workloads |
The stated workloads for Medical Review Prepay Complex Probe Reviews and Prepay Complex Reviews seem to be very high.
| Please verify that these numbers are accurate. Please also specify the workload count, i.e. claims that were developed or developed claims receiving a supplier response. | The MR workloads identified in Amendment 000001 are correct and should be used in the development of the proposal. | ||
| L6 | L.11 Proposal Assumptions | Section L.11 Proposal Assumptions |
MIP Medical Review (MR) Workloads
The PIM does not clearly define what constitutes the workloads for Medical Review Data Requests or Medical Review Limited Education.
To ensure bidders have a clear understanding, please provide a definition and / or examples for these workloads. The workload for Medical Review Data Requests references the actual number of requests the contractor receives from internal (within the organization) or external (GAO, OIG) sources asking for data the contractor possesses.
Medial Review Limited Education is basic education that the contractor’s MR unit may provide to the supplier (documentation, results of probe) and assist the provider outreach and education (POE)staff as the subject matter expert. In-depth education is provided by provider outreach and education (POE) staff. POE is responsible for providing education as a result of referrals from medical review.
L7 L.14.b Solicitation L.14.b, page 86… “Offerors shall submit a Past Performance Questionnaire (PPQ) from a maximum of five (5) contracts and/or subcontracts for same or similar work (completed and/or currently in progress) for the prime contractor and any subcontractors for the last three (3) years. Offerors and proposed subcontractors shall limit the number of PPQs submitted to no more than five each.”
| Request: Please clarify the intent of “no more than five each” as they apply to 5 for the prime and 5 for each subcontractor or 5 total for the prime and subcontractors. | A maximum of five (5) Past Performance Questionnaires shall be submitted for the prime and a maximum of five (5) Past Performance Questionnaires shall be submitted for each subcontractor. | ||
| L8 | L.14.(b) | Solicitation L.14(b) Tab B page 86… “…note that one PPQ, Attachment J-8, may be submitted for multiple DME MAC proposals…..” |
| Question: As the J-8 PPQ attachments differ between A and B RFPs, does it matter which of the PPQ forms is provided for multiple DME MAC proposals? | The PPQ posted for Jurisdiction A is correct. For Jursidiction B DME MAC, a revised PPQ was provided in Amendment 000002 to the DME MAC Jurisdiction B solicitation. | ||
| L9 | L.15 (2); L.16.b | Solicitation L.15 (2) page 92… “TAB F.2 Indirect Rates; TAB F.3 Uncompensated Overtime” |
Solicitation L.16.b page 97… “TAB F.2 Uncompensated Overtime; TAB F.3 Total Compensation Plan…”
| Request: Please clarify the intent for Business Proposal Volume IIB Tabs F.2 and F.3. | See Amendment 000002. The revised Section L.15(2) will be as follows: Tab F.1 Business Proposal Assumptions; Tab F.2 Uncompensated Overtime; and Tab F.3 Total Compensation Plan. | ||
| L10 | L.16.a | Solicitation L.16.a, page 94… “The business proposal spreadsheets shall be submitted for each CLIN, including options. The business proposal spreadsheets shall also be provided on CD-ROM (six (6) copies).” |
Attachment J-9… ”NOTE: The offeror shall only provide the cost templates and the CLIN Summary.xlsx document via CD-ROM. The offeror shall not submit hard copies of these documents.”
| Request: The solicitation instruction requires hard copy submittal of the business proposal spreadsheets while the J-9 instruction contradicts this instruction, requiring only electronic submission. Please clarify which instruction is to be followed. | Yes, six (6) hardcopies of the Business Proposal and six (6) separate CD_ROM copies of the buisness proposal spreadsheets are required. | ||
| L11 | L.16.b | Solicitation L.16.b Tab F.1 page 96, 97… “For the sub-factors listed below, the Offeror shall provide labor rationale by labor category and should describe how the basis of the hours was determined (e.g. historical data, technical experience, etc.). |
Travel:… ODCs:… Fee:……”
| Question: As labor is not generally included in Travel, ODCs, and Fee costs, is it possible some instruction text is missing? If not, could the Government please clarify the intended type of labor to be provided for those cost categories? | This section was revised. See Amendment 000002. | ||
| L12 | L.11 | L.11 PROPOSAL ASSUMPTIONS |
| The solicitation is silent with respect to the date with which Contractors are to lock into regarding IOM compliance. However, in prior solicitations, CMS indicated this date was the date of RFP release. Will CMS be providing the date of the IOM that Contractors are to assume for proposal purposes? | Offerors shall use the IOM version as of December 30, 2009 - the RFP release date for this procurement. | ||
| L14 | L.19 | L.19 ORAL PRESENTATION INSTRUCTIONS |
| This section describes what the offeror must demonstrate through its oral presentation. How specifically will the oral presentation contents, effectiveness and results be evaluated and/or rated by CMS? | The oral presentation shall be reviewed as part of the offeror's Technical Understanding. | ||
| L15 | L.19 | L.19 ORAL PRESENTATION INSTRUCTIONS |
3. Participation and Attendance
| It is clear that the oral presentation guidelines prohibit the use of consultants to make any part of the oral presentations. Will CMS accept board members as part of a panel of presenters? | CMS will accept Board Members if they are Key Personnel, Senior or General Managers. | ||
| L16 | L.11 | RFP-CMS-2010-0004, Amendment 000001, January 6, 2010 |
L.11 PROPOSAL ASSUMPTIONS, page s 80-85, are deleted in their entirety and replaced as follows:
For estimating purposes, the annual workloads in the tables below shall be used by all Offerors in preparing their technical and business proposals.
MIP Medical Review (MR)
| The MR workload seems very high. Is CMS prospectively increasing future MR workloads or are the MR workloads representative of current experience? | The MR workloads identified in Amendment 000001 are correct and should be used in the development of the proposal. | ||
| L17 | L.16 | L.16 GENERAL BUSINESS PROPOSAL INSTRUCTIONS |
a. VOLUME IIA - Business Proposal Cost Template Instructions
5. Indirect Rates: The Offeror shall provide the indirect rates as applicable along with the relative percentages on the business proposal spreadsheets. For Business Proposal pricing purposes, your organization shall develop its proposed indirect rates for this proposal using a business base that includes current actual workload and the award of the JA DME MAC contract only. At this time, please provide the indirect rates only that will be applied during the time of request for Revised Final Proposal Revision. Provide a break-out of the business base included in the rates.
This section instructs offerors to “develop its proposed indirect rates for this proposal using a business base that includes current actual workload and the award of the JA DME MAC contract only.”
| Please provide a definition of CMS current actual workload. | "Current actual workload" is not CMS workload. Indirect rates may be based on the Offerors current related business base and the impact of the addition of the DME Jurisdiction for this solicitation. See Amendment 000002. | ||
| L18 | L.14.b | Reference: Solicitation L.14.b, Tab B: Past Performance Instructions, pages 86-87 The last bullet in the list of information required asks each Offeror to include a copy of the reference’s PPQ. |
| Request: Please clarify the intent of this bullet. Is the intent for the Offeror to submit completed copies of each reference’s PPQ (J-08 Past Performance Questionnaire) to CMS, or should the references submit completed PPQs directly to CMS? | Attachment J-08, Past Performance Questionaire instructs the references to complete the questionaire and submit directly to CMS and this is how CMS expects to receive them. However, if the Offeror is provided a copy from the reference, it may be included in the proposal submission. | ||
| L19 | L.16.a | Reference: Solicitation L.16.a, Volume IIA, Business Proposal Cost Template Instructions, 4, Subcontracts, page 94 |
| Request: Please confirm that commercial item subcontracts, competitively awarded subcontracts, and subcontracts awarded to small businesses are not required to submit complete business proposal spreadsheets showing breakdown of costs to CMS in a separately sealed package. | Subcontract information should be provided in accordance with FAR 15.404-3 and Section L.16.a, Volume IIA, Business Proposal Cost Template Instructions, 4, Subcontracts of the Solicitation. | ||
| L20 | L.16 | Reference: L.16 General Business Proposal Instructions, Tab J(b) Adequate Accounting and Estimating System, page 99 |
| Request: We are unable to locate the January 2001 version of the DCAA Publication DCAAP 7641.90, titled “Information for Contractors.” Please confirm this is the correct version. If so, please provide a copy. | The DCAA Publication DCAAP 7641.90, Information for Contractors, dated January 2005, is the correct and latest version for Offerors use. This publication may be found on the DCAA website: www.dcma.mil | ||
| L21 | L.16 | Reference: L.16, General Business Proposal Instructions, Tab D, Indirect Cost Rate Agreement and Rate History, page 95 |
| Request: The first sentence states “The Offeror shall provide a rate history for direct and indirect rates for the last two fiscal years”. This tab appears to be related specifically to the indirect rates. Please clarify the reference to “direct” rates here. | See Amendment 000002. The rate history will only be required for indirect rates. | ||
| L22 | L.19 | Reference: L.19 Oral Presentation Instructions, 4 Schedule, page 105 “The offeror shall provide all other equipment necessary for the presentation.” |
Question: Does “all other equipment” include the projection screen(s)? If CMS is providing the screen(s)… A) is there more than one screen in the presentation room?
| B) what are the screen(s) dimensions? | Further instructions and information on facilities for Oral Presentations will be provided when Oral Presentations are scheduled. | ||
| L23 | L.19 | Reference: L.19 Oral Presentation Instructions, 4 Schedule, page 105 “The offeror shall provide all other equipment necessary for the presentation.” |
| Question: Is the contractor expected to provide audio amplification equipment? If so, can it be wireless? | Further instructions and information on facilities for Oral Presentations will be provided when Oral Presentations are scheduled. | ||
| L25 | L.19 | Reference: L.19 Oral Presentation Instructions, pages 103-106 |
Question: Will there be additional information provided about the presentation room for orals presentations? For example, the size of the room, the layout of the room, etc.
| Will a site visit be possible prior to the presentation? | Further instructions and information on facilities for Oral Presentations will be provided when Oral Presentations are scheduled. | ||
| L26 | L.3(2) | Section #/Title: L.3(2) |
Page: 70 Question: This paragraph describes the information to be provided on the first page of the proposal.
1. Can this information be provided in the cover letter?
| 2. Is this information excluded from the page count? | The information specified in Section L.3(2) is considered to be part of the proposal and will be treated as such. | ||
| L27 | L.10.o(7) | Section #/Title: L.10.o (7) |
Page: 81
| Question: The RFP states, “Proposal text headings shall be no smaller than 10-point Arial Narrow Bold.” Please clarify where these headings would be used in the proposal. Item (5) states, “Type size shall not be less than 12-point font type Times New Roman.” | The text headings for the proposal headings should be no smaller than 12-point Arial Narrow Bold. The offeror shall determine when to use such headings for clarification and/or proposal organizational purposes. Content type shall not be smaller than 10-point arial Narrow Regular. | ||
| L28 | L.14.b | Section #/Title: L.14.b Tab B: Past Performance Instructions |
Page: 88
| Question: CMS will consider the findings in relation to four elements: Customer Service, Financial Management, Operational Excellence, and Innovations and Technology. In the information that is to be submitted for each contract, there is not enough space for this information to be addressed in the Brief Contract Description (1/4 page). Should offerors include this information after providing the other requested information? | Attachment J-08, Past Performance Questionaire instructs the references to complete the questionaire and submit directly to CMS. If the submitter requires additional space, the form may be adjusted or additional pages may be attached. | ||
| L29 | L.15 | Section #/Title: L.15 VOLUME II – BUSINESS PROPOSAL ORGANIZATION |
And L.16.b VOLUME IIB – Written Business Proposal Narrative Instructions Page: 94,98 and 99 Question: Section L.15 defines the subtabs to be provided in Tab F to be:
Tab F.1 Business Proposal Assumptions Tab F.2 Indirect Rates Tab F.3 Uncompensated Overtime
Section L.16.b defines the subtabs to be provided in Tab F to be:
Tab F.1 Business Proposal Assumptions Tab F.2 Uncompensated Overtime Tab F.3 Total Compensation Plan
| Please clarify which subtabs should be included. | See Amendment 000002. The revised Section L.15(2) will be as follows: Tab F.1 Business Proposal Assumptions; Tab F.2 Uncompensated Overtime; and Tab F.3 Total Compensation Plan. | ||
| L30 | L.16.a(4) | Section #/Title: L.16.a(4) Subcontracts |
Page: 96
| Question: Please confirm that subcontractors should submit only completed business proposal spreadsheets (Attachments J-10 through J-16) in a sealed package, and no other information (Tabs in Volume IIB) is required from the subcontractors. | Subcontract information should be provided in accordance with FAR 15.404-3 and Section L.16.a, Volume IIA, Business Proposal Cost Template Instructions, 4, Subcontracts of the Solicitation. | |||
| L31 | L.11 | L.11 Proposal Assumptions. This section provides workload statistics for various functions. Page 83 provides the workload for clerical error reopenings. Is a breakdown available for this statistic between telephone reopenings and written reopenings? | No, there is no breakdown available between telephone and written reopenings. | |
| L34 | L.11 | RFP Section L.11, Page 84 and Amendment 000001, Page 4 | ||
| Question: Of the 1,989,631 provider telephone inquires in Option Period One, what percentage are completed within the IVR vs. handled by a CSR? | Offerors should use their IVR handle rate experience in developing the proposal. The current average DME MAC IVR rate is 72.8% | |||
| L37 | L.11 | RFP Section L.11, Page 84 and Amendment 000001, Page 4 | ||
| Question: Please clarify if the number of Prepay Complex Probe Reviews and Postpay Complex Probe Reviews are the number of cases (or probes) vs. the number of claims included in all probes | There are no post pay probes. Five percentage (5%) of the total complex prepay review represents prepayment probe reviews. | |||
| L39 | L.11 | Amendment 000001, page 2, Section L.11 pages 80-85 are deleted in their entirety and replaced |
Question: Please confirm if CMS intends to delete items f. (HIGLAS) through h. (Records Retention) of the original solicitation on pages 86 and 87?
Assuming that CMS intends to keep items f. – h. The Implementation Handbook indicates that "the incoming MAC will be responsible for the shipment of files and any physical assets that it obtains from the outgoing MAC. The cost of conveyance will be borne by the incoming MAC." The Incoming MAC has two options with respect to offsite storage -- transfer to incoming MAC storage facility or keep at existing facility.
Question: Where is/are the physical address(es) of the outgoing contractors office(s) where records may be stored (e.g., work in progress)?
Question: Where are the 33,572 cubic feet of records currently stored? In what facility(ies), in what city(ies), state(s)? Who is(are) the records storage vendor(s)? Is/are the storage facility(ies) NARA-compliant? What is the current storage rate? The NARA compliance will be enforced on this procurement. Offerors are required to identify and/or negotiate rates with a NARA compliant facility.
For proposal purposes, one (1) cubic foot equals one (1) box. Also assume records to be relocated for DME MAC Jurisdiction A are located in the Boston, MA metropolitan statistical area.
OAGM
&L&D&CJURISDICTION A
&L&9RFP-CMS-2010-0004&C&9&A&R&9&P
Section M
| DME A RFP Questions from Industry - Section M | |||
| ID | Section | Question | Answer/Action |
| M1 | M.2 | M.2 GENERAL PROCEDURES |
Section c. of the Technical Evaluation indicates, “To determine a rating for each Offeror, the TEP will access each proposal’s strengths, weaknesses, significant weaknesses and deficiencies in relation to the requirements in the SOW.”
| Is CMS’ assessment of the proposal strengths, weaknesses, significant weaknesses and deficiencies against the evaluation criteria (M.4) or the requirements in the SOW (M.2.c)? If to the requirements of the SOW, will CMS please clarify how offerors are to provide a Technical Proposal consistent with the instructions in L.14 and still meet the criteria in M.2.c? | See Amendment 000002. This section was revised, deleting the last sentence in the first paragraph. | ||
| M3 | M.4 | M.4 CAPABILITIES DETERMINATION FOR AWARD AND PROPOSAL INSTRUCTIONS |
In the body of section a. (Past Performance) and section b. (Technical Understanding), the phrase “CMS may consider…” is used multiple times.
| Will CMS consider these items in the evaluation, consistent with the language in the first paragraph of each section (M.4.a & b), or does CMS intend to reserve its ability to consider these items at its discretion? | The one overall rating is "Offeror Capability." The two equally weighted subfactors of "Offeror Capability" are "Past Performance" and "Technical Understanding." In the stated evaluation criteria, the agency has identified the four following aspects of each subfactor: 1. Customer Service; 2. Financial Management; 3. Operational Excellence; 4. Innovations and Technology. All findings under Past Performance and Technical Understanding will be related to, reasonably related to, or encompassed by one of these four aspects. The four aspects are not weighted sub-subfactors. they are aspects of the two identified subfactors. CMS will consider these aspects in its evaluation. | |||
| M4 | M.2b | Section M.2b Multiple Jurisdictions. Section M.2b states that Offerors may bid on multiple RFPs but will be limited to no more than two (2) prime DME MAC awards. Considering this limitation, it is noted that for several of the Key Personnel positions identified in Section B of the RFP, it states that the position must be fully dedicated to the DME MAC (such as the Claims Processing Manager position) while others provide that the position be fully dedicated (such as the Implementation Project Director). Since it is more economical and efficient to the Medicare program for ongoing positions such as the Claims Processing Manager to be dedicated to the DME MAC lines of business, would CMS confirm that those positions which provide that they shall be fully dedicated to the DME MAC apply to both DME MACs in the event an offeror receives two separate DME MAC awards. Assuming that CMS agrees with this position, would consideration be given to allowing the Medical Director to serve on two DME MAC contracts, thereby allowing for consistency and efficiency. | Any position that is defined as being fully dedicated to the DME MAC shall be interpreted as fully dedicated to the one specific DME MAC jurisdiction contract. This does not permit the use the same Key Personnel across multiple Medicare contracts. | |
| M5 | M.4 | M.4 Capabilities Determination for Award and Proposal Instructions. This section provides that the evaluation of an offeror’s capability is comprised of two factors which are of equal importance: 1. Past Performance and 2. Technical Understanding. For both factors CMS states it will consider four elements: Customer Service, Financial Management, Operational Excellence, and Innovations and Technology. The RFP is silent on the order of importance or relative ranking of these four elements under both factors. Would CMS clarify the order of importance or relative importance of each element? | In Section M.4 it states, "This single overall rating – Offeror Capability – is comprised of two factors which are equal in order of importance" | |
| M6 | M.2.B.2 | Section M.2.b.2 General Procedures, Multiple Jurisdictions, Page 112 | ||
| Question: In item 2, what does "will continue to attribute the protested" mean? | For an award made to any contractor, that award will count towards the DME MAC two contract limitation during the protest period (from protest receipt to the protest decision). |
&L&D&CJURISDICTION A
&L&9RFP-CMS-2010-0004&C&9&A&R&9&P
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