Questions_and_Responses_Amend_1.xlsx
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- National Surveyor Training Program Federal contract opportunity
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- RFP-CMS-2015-8A-NSTP
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| RFP-CMS-2015-8A-NSTP | ||||||
| Number | IDIQ or TO | SOW/SOD | Section No. | Section/Title | Question | CMS Response |
| 1 | IDIQ | Business Proposal | L.13 | Proposal Presentation and Delivery | Would the Govt. please confirm that there is no requirement for a Business Proposal for the IDIQ RFP | There is no business proposal for the IDIQ RFP, only for the Task Orders. |
| 2 | IDIQ | Business Proposal | L.2 | Responsible Prospective Contractor Submission | As the IDIQ RFP does not require a Business Volume, would the Govt. please confirm that the “Responsible Prospective Contractor Plan” is required as part of the TO 1 Business volume. | Include the contractor plan in the business proposal for T0001. |
| 3 | IDIQ | COI | L.16 | Section & Title: Conflict Of Interest And Compliance Program Proposal Instructions (Volume II) | Are all subcontractors required to submit conflict of interest information? | Yes |
| 4 | IDIQ | COI | L.16 | Conflict Of Interest And Compliance Program Proposal Instructions (Volume II) | Are small businesses required to have a compliance program in place? Many small businesses may not have a compliance program/department in place as it is not required according to FAR 52-203-13 – Contractor Code of Business Ethics and Conduct. The FAR states: (c) Business ethics awareness and compliance program and internal control system. This paragraph (c) does not apply if the Contractor has represented itself as a small business concern pursuant to the award of this contract or if this contract is for acquisition of a commercial item as defined at FAR 2.101. Can CMS please clarify that, based on the FAR, small businesses will or will not need to submit the following: |
1. Position descriptions for the Compliance Officer and other members of the Compliance Department
2. Code of Conduct
3. Written compliance policies and procedures
4. Compliance training materials used or developed in the last year
5. Names and positions of the Board of Directors and/or Compliance Committee members charged with oversight of the compliance program.
6. Charters for the Board and/or Executive Compliance Committees.
7. Conflict of interest questionnaire(s) (blank) that are completed by employees, managers, officers and Board members.
8. Risk assessment protocol(s) developed by the Compliance Department.
9. Internal audit plan Refer to FAR 52.203-13 (b).
All documents that are applicable are requested to be submitted.
| 5 | IDIQ | COI | L.16, p. 95, L.17, p. 98 | Conflict Of Interest And Compliance Program Proposal Instructions (Volume II) And Instructions For Submitting Past Performance Information | The RFP states in section L.16, "Offerors or Contractors must disclose all contracts, both government (local, state and federal) currently held with CMS, other government health care agencies, or with nongovernment entities, as a Prime and/or as a Subcontractor." while L.17 b 2 states "All relevant contracts/orders . . ." | |
| Please confirm our understanding that, only relevant contracts with government and nongovernment entities need be disclosed. | L.16 is requesting information regarding conflict of interest. All contracts must be disclosed, as requested. |
L.17.b.2 is requesting information regarding past performance. Only relevant contracts that reflect ability to perform duties required for this SOW are requested.
| 6 | IDIQ | COI | L.16, Tab C, p. 97 | Conflict Of Interest And Compliance Program Proposal Instructions (Volume II), Compliance Program Attestation | This section references a compliance guidance document to be found at: https://www.cms.gov/MedicareContractingReform/Downloads/compliance.pdf. When following this link, the CMS.gov website states “We are sorry, but there is no www.cms.gov Web page that matches your entry.” | ||
| Please provide a copy of this document or an updated link | http://www.cms.gov/Medicare/Medicare-Contracting/Medicare-Administrative-Contractors/Downloads/compliance.pdf | ||||||
| 7 | IDIQ | General | B.1 | Description Of Services | Is there a contractor or contractor(s) currently performing these services for CMS? If yes, can you please state who they are? | The Government is not releasing that information at this time. | |
| 8 | IDIQ | General | G.17 | Indirect Cost Rates | Since there is no requirement for a Business Volume under the IDIQ response, how will indirect rate ceilings be established for any Cost Plus task orders to be awarded under the IDIQ? | Indirect cost rates ceilings will be established at the task order level. | |
| 9 | IDIQ | General | H.1 | HHSAR 352.242-70 Key Personnel | There appears to be an inconsistency between the Key Personnel required in this section of the RFP (page 41) and the Key Personnel required in Section L – INSTRUCTIONS, CONDITIONS, AND NOTICIES TO OFFERORS OR QUOTERS, L.14, C. Key Personnel (Page 94). Section H requires a Program/Project Manager and Section L requires a Program/Project Manager and a Principal Investigator. Would the CMS please provide a clarification regarding this inconsistency? | See revised Section L.14.C of the attached RFP. | |
| 10 | IDIQ | General | H.1 and L.14 | HHSAR 352.242-70 Key Personnel (JAN 2006) and Technical Proposal Instructions (Volume I) | In H.1 – Program/Project Manager is listed as the only Key Personnel. In L.14, C, “The Key Personnel shall include a Program/Project Manager as well as the Principal Investigator”. |
a. Is the Principal Investigator required as Key Personnel?
b. What are the role and qualifications of the Principal Investigator? a. No, it is dependent on the task specifications if needed or not.
b. See revised Section L.14.C. of the attached RFP.
| 11 | IDIQ | General | K.1, p. 75-84 | Completed by the Offeror: [The Representations and Certifications must be executed by an individual authorized to bind the Offeror.] | Does CMS want Section K for just the offeror, or, the offeror and all subcontractors? | Prime contractors only. |
| 12 | IDIQ | General | L | At the IDIQ level, would the Government please clarify the absence of any pre-defined Labor Categories and Rates at the IDIQ level? How does the Govt. intend to establish Labor Categories and corresponding Rates to be used by the vendor on future Task Order Price proposals? | T0001 is being used to determine the IDIQ awardees. You will propose the approporaite labor categories for each task order you bid on. It is up to you to determine what labor categories you feel are required except for the key personnel required in each TORP. | |
| 13 | IDIQ | General | L.10 | Communications Regarding This Solicitation | Page 88 states that, “CMS will answer relevant questions by amendment to this solicitation, with copies of both the questions and answers being supplied to all prospective Offerors via FedBizOpps, without reference as to the originating source.” Is there an estimated timeframe on when the responses to the questions will be available? | Responses will be posted on www.fbo.gov. |
| 14 | IDIQ | General | L.11, L.12 and L.13 | General Proposal Instructions For A Multiple IDIQ Contract And Task Orders; Proposal Organization; Proposal Presentation And Delivery | The only required IDIQ volumes are Volume I - Technical Proposal, and Volume II – Conflict of Interest and Compliance Program. Is pricing required for the IDIQ submission? | No. |
| 15 | IDIQ | General | L.12, p. 90 | Proposal Organization | Does CMS want “b. Volume II – Conflict of Interest and Compliance Program” from just the prime offeror or the prime and all subcontractors? | Prime offeror and major subcontractors. |
| 16 | IDIQ | General | L.13 | Proposal Presentation And Delivery | Can CMS confirm that the only items that are to be submitted April 15 is the response to the IDIQ SOW and Task Order 001? | That is correct. |
| 17 | IDIQ | General | L.13 | Proposal Presentation and Delivery | Since the proposal is due approximately one week after Easter, we respectfully request that CMS consider a one week extension in due date and that bidders be alerted as soon as possible (outside the normal response to vendor questions amendment) if this extension will be granted. | No extension will be granted. |
| 18 | IDIQ | General | L.13 | Proposal Presentation And Delivery, B. Proposal Delivery | Would CMS consider an extension of IDIQ and Task Order 1 proposal delivery dates of up to 30 days (i.e., May 15)? The scope of the IDIQ is broader and deeper than anticipated based on the original sources sought released in 2014. We believe it is in the best interest of the government to allow the small business responders additional time to provide the mandatory 90 pages of technical approach responses (60 IDIQ and 30 Task Order 1) to ensure that proposal submissions are clear, concise, and thorough in order to facilitate efficient evaluation. Should CMS consider such an extension, we respectfully request a corresponding extension to the optional task orders 2-5. | No extension will be granted. |
| 19 | IDIQ | General | L.13.e | Page Size, Typing, Spacing and Page Numbering | Would the Govt. please confirm that the total page count for the IDIQ Proposal “Volume 1 – Technical Proposal Technical” is 60 pages including the content for the Past Performance? | The IDIQ technical proposal is 60 pages, single sided. Past performance for the IDIQ is not included in the page count. |
All Task Order technical proposals are 30 pages, single sided. Past performance is not included in the page count for task order technical proposals.
| 20 | IDIQ | General | L.14 | Technical Proposal Instructions (Volume I), C. Key Personnel | Please confirm that for the Base IDIQ, both the Program/Project Manager and Principal Investigator are considered Key Personnel as section H.1 only listed the Program/Project Manager as Key Personnel. | See revised Section L.14.C of the attached RFP. | |
| 21 | IDIQ | General | L.14 (Page 94) | Technical Proposal Instructions (Volume I), B. Past Performance | The RFP states, “CMS will access the CPARS for all relevant CMS performance history, if available.” It also states, “Attachment J.6, Past Performance Questionnaire, must be submitted directly by the references listed in your proposal. Attachment J.6 includes a sample cover letter and the questionnaire that should be submitted to each reference.” | ||
| Are Past Performance Questionnaires required for contracts for which CPARS exist? | No. They are not required but it is Offeror's option to include them. | ||||||
| 22 | IDIQ | General | L.14 C | Key Personnel | The below table should be used when providing a summary of the past performance information: The section states in part: The Key Personnel shall include a Program/Project Manager as well as the Principal Investigator. | ||
| Can we assume there will be only two Key Personnel required for this response? | For the SOW level we just want to know your capabilites. No personnel or billable actions are evoked via the SOW, only Task Orders have billable actions. We are using this RFP SOW to identify vendors to compete for the Task Orders under this IDIQ. Please refer to revised Section L.14.C. | ||||||
| 23 | IDIQ | General | L.14 C | Key Personnel | There is no mention of page count per resume of each Key Personnel. Is there a page limit for each resume? | For IDIQ and all task orders, resumes shall be a maximum of 2 single sided pages each and will not count against the written proposal page limit. Resumes are to be included in appendix. | |
| 24 | IDIQ | General | L.14 C | Key Personnel | Can we assume the Key Personnel resumes do NOT count toward the overall 60 page limit? | For IDIQ and all task orders, resumes shall be a maximum of 2 single sided pages each and will not count against the written proposal page limit. Resumes are to be included in appendix. | |
| 25 | IDIQ | General | L.14, A | Technical Proposal Instructions (Volume I), Technical Approach | Support the Continuing Education Units (CEUs) process (IACET- International Association for Continuing Education and Training) for most new and select courses. | ||
| Should costs associated with maintaining existing and obtaining new CEUs be included in the offeror’s pricing? | Yes | ||||||
| 26 | IDIQ | General | L.14, A | Technical Proposal Instructions (Volume I), Technical Approach | Are resumes subject to the volume page limitations? | ||
| May we submit resumes in separate Appendices without page limitations, as is allowed in the Task Order 0001 submission? | For IDIQ and all task orders, resumes shall be a maximum of 2 single sided pages each and will not count against the written proposal page limit. Resumes are to be included in appendix. | ||||||
| 27 | IDIQ | General | L.14, A | Technical Approach | The section states in part: In addition, Sections B, G and H of the RFP shall be completed where applicable and included as an attachment to the technical proposal. | ||
| It is unclear which if any elements mentioned need to be provided as an attachment. Can CMS please be specific regarding Sections B, G and H of the RFP and what exactly needs to be completed and required to be attached to our response? | Please refer to RFP and determine which sections need to be included and are applicable. |
| 28 | IDIQ | General | L.14, C | Instructions, Conditions, And Noticies To Offerors Or Quoters, C. Key Personnel | Can the CMS please provide the expected role for the Key Personnel including the Principle Investigator position? | See revised section L.14.C of the attached RFP. | |
| 29 | IDIQ | General | L.14, D | Management Plan and Corporate Capacity | There is no mention of page counts requirements for this section of the response. Will CMS please state a maximum page count for this section? | This is included in the page count. | |
| 30 | IDIQ | General | L.14, D | Management Plan and Corporate Capacity | Based on the response to the question regarding this section’s maximum page count, is this section exempt from the overall 60 page limit? | This is included in the page count. | |
| 31 | IDIQ | General | L.14, D | Management Plan and Corporate Capacity | The section states in part: 1. Individual TO needs will dictate specific management, quality assurance and staffing plans, but the Offeror shall describe a reasonable approach to spanning all settings of care and domains of care, taking into consideration that individual TO needs will dictate specific management, quality assurance and staffing plans. | ||
| As this statement specifically mentions ‘plans’ it also states specific place will be at the TO level. Can we assume CMS is seeking our ‘approach’ to these items and not detailed plans that are equivalent to a deliverable? | CMS is requesting that Offeror provide their best approach based on the SOW and the requirements of the RFP. | ||||||
| 32 | IDIQ | General | L.14.A. | Technical Approach | Section states in part: Please note that there are some sections listed below that are not included in the 60 single-sided or 30 double-sided page limit. Some is a vague term and not fully defined below in all cases. Could the CMS please state clearly which sections are excluded from page count? | For the IDIQ, past performance is not included in the page count and resumes are not included in the page count. |
For all task orders, past performance is included in the page count and resumes are not included in the page count.
| 33 | IDIQ | General | L.14.A. | Technical Approach | There is no mention of wither a cover or transmittal letter. Is it acceptable to provide a brief one page cover letter after the proposal cover and before the table of contents? | Yes |
| 34 | IDIQ | General | L.14.B | Past Performance (page count unlimited) | Would the Govt. please clarify the intent of “page count: unlimited” that is noted in the Section heading? Is it the intent of the Government to indicate that the Vendor can include in the Technical Volume I any number of Past Performances (for any number of pages each) but subject to the limitation of 60 pages for the entire Volume 1? Or, is the Past Performance content excluded from the 60-page limitation? | The past performance is excluded from the 60 page count for the IDIQ. |
| 35 | IDIQ | General | L.14.C | Key Personnel | Can you provide an explanation on the purpose of a Principal Investigator? Per the NSTP IDIQ, should this be a key personnel or required skill set on the anticipated TO? | See revised section L.14.C of the attached RFP. |
| 36 | IDIQ | General | L.14.C, H.1 | Key Personnel | In Section L.14.C, key personnel are identified as Program/Project Manager and Principal Investigator while in section K.1 it identifies only the Program/Project Manager as key. Can the government please clarify. Also, are the key personnel at the IDIQ level billable under the individual task orders? | See revised section L.14.C of the attached RFP. |
| 37 | IDIQ | General | L.17 | Instructions For Submitting Past Performance Information | a. Are prime offerors and major subcontractors expected to list ALL relevant past performances within the last 3 years? |
b. Are past performance questionnaires (PPQs) required for all prime offerors and major subcontractors? Or are they required only for those without relevant Federal government past performance?
c. What are the PPQ requirements for subcontracted Federal government work in this context? a. As stated in L.17.b, Offeror and all its significant subcontractor(s) identified in the proposal are required to provide a summary to disclose all past performance information with a period of performance end date within the last 3 years.
b. It is Offeror's option to include PPQs.
c. It is Offeror's option to include PPQs. Refer to Attachment J.6.
| 38 | IDIQ | General | L.17 | Instructions For Submitting Past Performance Information | May we assume that no page limit means the Past Performances are excluded from the overall 60 page limit? | Regarding the IDIQ, past performance is excluded from the page count. |
| 39 | IDIQ | General | L.17 | Instructions For Submitting Past Performance Information | Is it expected past performances will be provided by the prime contractor and each Significant Subcontractor? | Please refer to Section L.17.a and L.17b. which states "The Offeror and all its significant subcontractor(s) identified in the proposal are required to provide a summary to disclose all of the following for the past performance information with a period of performance end date within the last 3 years of the date of this solicitation: . . ." |
| 40 | IDIQ | General | L.17 | Instructions For Submitting Past Performance Information | While Section L.14 B. states no page limit, how many past performances are required as a minimum and what is the maximum number of past performances that may be provided? | There is no number limitation; however, the time limitation is the past 3 years. |
| 41 | IDIQ | General | L.17 | Instructions For Submitting Past Performance Information | a) Please confirm that Attachment J.6 should only be submitted by the Offeror and Significant Subcontractors for State/Local Governments and/or commercial customers. |
b) May the Offeror and Significant Subcontractors submit Attachment J.6 for non-Federal customers in addition to providing reference information for Federal customers?
c) May Subcontractors not meeting the Significant threshold of 25% provide Federal customer reference information and Attachment J.6 for non-Federal customers? a) PPQs are optional.
b) Per Section L.17.b, "Offerors and proposed significant subcontractors without relevant Federal government past performance experience may ask customers to submit no more than three (3) Past Performance Questionnaire (PPQ) for the same or similar work directly to the Contracting Officer (See Attachment J.6). Contracts may include those entered into with the State/Local Governments and/or commercial customers."
c) See response to b above.
| 42 | IDIQ | General | L.17 b | Instructions | The below table should be used when providing a summary of the past performance information: the table is then shown. | ||
| Are we required to use the table as exactly shown? Would it be possible to present the identical information as rows instead of columns because the narrow columns for some information would result in text that is difficult to read? | No. Use table provided. | ||||||
| 43 | IDIQ | General | L.2 | Responsible Prospective Contractor Submission | The section states in part: This information shall be submitted in no more than a five (5) page Executive Summary in the Business Proposal. | ||
| Is this five (5) page limit inclusive in the overall 60 page limit? | The Executive Summary shall be included in the business proposal for each task order. | ||||||
| 44 | IDIQ | General | L.3 | Type of Contract FAR 52.216-1 (Apr 1984) | Has CMS made a determination as to how many multiple 8(a) awards are anticipated from this IDIQ? | No. | |
| 45 | IDIQ | General | M.2 b | General Procedures | The section states in part: The non-cost evaluation factors are as follows: then lists the five items. | ||
| Are these all weighted equally or is there some other evaluation metric? | Per Section M.2.c., "The non-cost evaluation factors are approximately equal in importance to each other, with the exception of Technical Approach which is of the highest importance." | ||||||
| 46 | IDIQ | General | M.2, g | General Procedures | "Task Orders 0002, 0003, 0004, and 0005 are not part of the evaluation to determine the IDIQ pool of awardees. Once the IDIQ pool of contractors is selected, CMS will evaluate Task Orders 0002, 0003, 0004 and 0005 for those contractors in the pool of qualified IDIQ holders.” We understand that Task Orders 0002, 0003, 0004 and 0005 are not due until 5/20/15, and will only be evaluated for successful pool of awardees of the IDIQ contract. Since responding to these Task Order Requests for Proposal will require a significant level of effort, does the Government plan to announce the IDIQ pool awardees prior to the 5/20/15 submission deadline? | Yes | |
| 47 | IDIQ | General | M.3 | Technical Evaluation | Would it be possible to weight the amount of work expected through the IDIQ contract based on the given categories; |
a. Website Management and Maintenance
b. Instructional Design Services
c. Training Support
d. Editorial Support Services
e. Other CMS anticipates the amount of work to be as follows:
1) Instructional Design Services
2) Training Support
3) Editorial Support Services
4) Website Management and Maintenance
5) Other
| 48 | IDIQ | General | M.3 | Technical Evaluation | The RFP states that Task Order 002 pertaining to Audio/Visual support is optional, however the evaluation criteria for the IDIQ response states that offerors must provide evidence of knowledge, technical understanding, and ability to provide audio visual support. Can CMS confirm how they will evaluate offerors who choose not to respond to the A/V task order based on their capabilities but must address this in the IDIQ response? | In order to be considered for an IDIQ award, the Offeror needs to demonstrate the ability to perform all of the tasks identified in the IDIQ SOW. | |
| 49 | IDIQ | General | M.3 | Technical Evaluation | Will offerors be evaluated negatively if they do not have Audio/Visual expertise (although this expertise seems to not be a requirement)? | In order to be considered for an IDIQ award, the Offeror needs to demonstrate the ability to perform all of the tasks identified in the IDIQ SOW. | |
| 50 | IDIQ | General | M.3, C | Technical Evaluation, Key Personnel | Is the offeror permitted to submit additional resumes beyond the required 2 (or 1) Key Personnel? | Including resumes beyond what is requested is optional. | |
| 51 | IDIQ | General | M.3, D | Management Plan and Corporate Activity | Would CMS please clarify the types of credentials that are expected under this IDIQ? | Include a clear, concise description of the capabilities and background including credentials such as years of work as a surveyor. | |
| 52 | IDIQ | General | M.3.B | Past Performance | Per the last paragraph, "In the case of an Offeror without a record of relevant past performance, or for which information on past performance is not available, the Offeror’s Past Performance may not be evaluated favorably or unfavorably." Does the Past Performance factor into the evaluation? If so, can you explain how? | Refer to Section M.2.b and M.2.c of the IDIQ RFP. | |
| 53 | IDIQ | General | A. Is the work anticipated to be performed entirely at Offsite (i.e. Off Government Site?) | ||||
| B. Does the Govt. require any of the Vendor’s Key Personnel or other staff to be working part- time or full-time at the CMS facilities? Would the Govt. be providing any office space for Key personnel? | A. No, it is dependent on the task specifications. |
B. Dependent on the task, work space is very limited at CMS but is provided for some tasks.
| 54 | IDIQ | General | Is there a vendor who provided any or part of the scope of work identified in the IDIQ or the 5 Task Orders during fiscal years 2013, 2014 and 2015? | The Government is not releasing that information at this time. | |
| 55 | IDIQ | General | a) Would the Govt. please provide the Ceiling Amount for the program (inclusive of all awards)? | ||
| b) How does this procurement Ceiling Amount compare to the spending (through Contracts) for the past five years, on an annual basis? | a) As stated in the IDIQ RFP, Section B.4, page 6, "The maximum IDIQ amount (i.e., the maximum ceiling across all Contracts/TOs) shall not exceed $200,000,000 ..." |
b) CMS is not releasing that information as part of this amendment.
| 56 | IDIQ | General | Would the Govt. please provide the dollar amount obligated and spent by the incumbent in fiscal year 2013, and 2014? | CMS is not releasing that information as part of this amendment. | |
| 57 | IDIQ | General | a) From all contracts with similar type of work in support of CMS SCG Training initiatives, would the Govt. please provide the historic data (fiscal years October 2013 – September 2014 and October 2014 – Till date) for the total money obligated to any and all of the Vendors? | ||
| b) Would the Govt. please provide the historic data /information of the dollar amounts obligated, if any, from all the CMS SCG contracts held by the “Signature Consulting”? | CMS is not releasing that information as part of this amendment. | ||||
| 58 | IDIQ | General | Would the Govt. please advise if any of the scope of work included in the IDIQ RFP is a result of a consolidation of one or more of existing contracts? | The Government is procuring this IDIQ to provide efficiencies. | |
| 59 | IDIQ | General | a) Will CMS be awarding the all or some of the Task Orders or just the IDIQ? If so, can you explain how? | ||
| b) TO 2 -5 have due dates no later than 2:00 p.m. EST on May 20, 2015 is that correct? | a) CMS intends to award the IDIQ and all task orders. |
b) The due dates for Task Orders 0002-0005 is correct.
| 60 | IDIQ | General | Who are the incumbent contractors and what piece of this work do they perform today? In addition, of the contractors currently serving, when does their eligibility for 8a end and what segments of the SOW would that cover? | The Government is not releasing that information at this time. | |||
| 61 | IDIQ | General | Assuming a normal transition (contract was not terminated) from a present incumbent to a new relationship with us, and upon notification that a new task is awarded, how much time should be allowed to fully hire/commit staff for the new work--is there a time allowance for an organized transition from the old to new contractor? Concerning existing instructors that are contract instructors, will a newly selected contractor be given access to those persons to permit continuity of the training content and methods by hiring the experienced people from the prior contractor (per task)? | The time and details for transition efforts will be dependent on the complexity and magnitude of the Task Order. | |||
| 62 | IDIQ | General | To what degree should contractors expect the quoted regulations regarding and the organization of training to remain stable. Which parts of Task One include significant regulatory changes that will need to be dealt with in the first year of the task? The LSC changes are significant, for example? Are similar large changes anticipated in LTC? | There are potential significant changes possible for LSC. | |||
| 63 | IDIQ | SOD | B.3 | Determination Of Order Type/Prices/Costs | Why is the Government not requiring labor categories/rates for the IDIQ contract? | Task Order 0001 is a mandatory task order and all offerors are required to bid. For each task order you bid on you will provide your proposed labor categoties and rates. | |
| 64 | IDIQ | SOW | 2.B | Fundamental Activities | a) Is the current SumTotal solution Hosted or On-Premise? | ||
| b) Which Blackboard solution is currently being used (i.e., Learning Basics, Open Source Learning, Learning Professional, or Learning Performance)? | a) Not- hosted externally. |
b) Blackboard LEARN for Course Delivery on Blackboard Managed Hosting.
| 65 | IDIQ | SOW | 2.B, Chapter 4 | Website Management & Maintenance | Are you able to provide us with the type of data format regarding the established record format for the LMS QIS records? | No |
| 66 | IDIQ | SOW | 2.B, p. 10 | Fundamental Activities | Is our understanding correct that CMS anticipates this contract serving as the administrator responsible for management, maintenance, updates, etc. for the current three components listed below: |
- SCG/Training Staff SumTotal LMS,
- SCG Surveyor Training Website, and
| - Blackboard | Only when the Task Order(s) for those fuctions are engaged. | ||||||
| 67 | IDIQ | SOW | C, 2, 2.B | Descriptions/Specifications/Work Statement, Fundamental Activities | The RFP requires the provision of CMS approved Subject Matter Experts (SME). Would the CMS please clarify the current approval process for SMEs, in addition is there a current list of approved SMEs that CMS can share with offerors? | Vendors awarded Task Orders will receive specifications on SME requirements relative to that Task Order. | |
| 68 | IDIQ | SOW | C, 2, 2.B | Descriptions/Specifications/Work Statement, Fundamental Activities | Will the contractor be required to recruit SMEs outside of those already working with CMS, if so, what specific areas of expertise are required? | Not required but dependent on need. | |
| 69 | IDIQ | SOW | C, 2, 2.B | Descriptions/Specifications/Work Statement, Fundamental Activities | Is there a limit to the number of projects for which a single SME can service during the contract period? | No | |
| 70 | IDIQ | SOW | C, 2, 2.B | Descriptions/Specifications/Work Statement, Fundamental Activities | The RFP addresses the requirement to integrate three components, specifically Sum Total LMS, Blackboard, and the SCG Surveyor Training Website. Can CMS please clarify if any of the systems are currently integrated and what is the expected outcome of having a fully integrated system? | not currently integrated; efficiency of scale. | |
| 71 | IDIQ | SOW | C, 2, 2.B | Descriptions/Specifications/Work Statement, Fundamental Activities | a) Is Blackboard used only as an asynchronous tool, or has CMS licensed the synchronous tool (Elluminate) within Blackboard for live training or as a webinar? | ||
| b) Can CMS please provide name of the webinar tool that is presently being used? | a) Blackboard is used both asynchronous and synchronous. |
b) The Webinar tool is Adobe Connect.
| 72 | IDIQ | SOW | C, 3 | Description/Specifications/ Work Statement, Instructor Support | The RFP lists various instructor personnel for traditional in addition to Blackboard courses, can the CMS please provide the names of the contractors currently providing instructor support for the courses listed in the RFP? | No | |
| 73 | IDIQ | SOW | C, 3, p. 13 | Description/Specifications/ Work Statement, Instructor Support/Training Facilitators And Training Coordinators | The RFP references the FY 2015 Training Schedule as attached to the SOW which we were unable to find, would the CMS please provide a copy of the document? | The training schedule forcasts for a quarter now. Attached (the latest Schedule). | |
| 74 | IDIQ | SOW | C, 4, p. 13 | Description/Specifications/ Work Statement, Website Management & Maintenance | Are the website management and helpdesk functions currently provided by by Hendall, if so, how many trouble tickets does Hendall receive on a weekly basis? | No | |
| 75 | IDIQ | SOW | C, 4, p. 13 | Description/Specifications/ Work Statement, Website Management & Maintenance | What are the terms and requirements of the service level agreement for resolving help desk tickets? | Respond and escalate as quickly as possible, level one is immediate response and elevation. | |
| 76 | IDIQ | SOW | C.1, Chapter 4 | Website Management & Maintenance | What is the current volume of calls and tickets for the Online Course Help Desk and Website? And what percentage of those calls or tickets have historically been escalated? What is the system in place today to handle the calls and documentation? Will the contractor have access to this system for use in performing this work? | For an example of the volume of calls and tickets for our Training Website, Help Desk had 140 calls/trouble tickets in Feb 2015. Of those calls approximately 30% were escalated. The current system is custom. The contractor will have access. The level of calls can vary and if the site or the products on the site had more problems it could get more trouble tickets. | |
| 77 | IDIQ | SOW | C.1, Chapter 4 | Website Management & Maintenance | Would CMS please clarify if the hosting of the server is expected at a CMS data center or at a Contractor site? | Contract site. | |
| 78 | IDIQ | SOW | C1, 1.B | Description/Specifications/ Work Statement, Purpose | Can the CMS please identify the formal or expected learning outcomes for the surveyor training? | Per the respecitve training objectives to 80% and in some cases 85% on respecitve end of course or lesson test. | |
| 79 | IDIQ | SOW | C-1, p. 18, Chapter 6 | Training Support- Coordination Of Hotel, Audio Visual Onsite Support And Logistics | Does the contractor need to provide per seat license(s) for Sum Total LMS (page 16), SRS (page 17), or Blackboard (Chapter 3, page 11), or does CMS have the required license(s) for contractor support? | Yes the contractor will need to provide per seat license(s) for Sum Total LMS and also seat license(s) for Blackboard. CMS owns copies of SRS units. We have respective contractor support for these systems. | |
| 80 | IDIQ | SOW | Chapter 3 | Instructor Support | What percentage of the instructor-led training takes place in hotels vs. CMS facilities? | 98% to 100% at hotels. | |
| 81 | IDIQ | SOW | Chapter 3 | Instructor Support | In this section, the RFP states that the FY 2015 Training Schedule is attached to this SOW, however there was no attachment. Can CMS please provide the training schedule? | The training schedule forcasts for a quarter now. Attached (the latest schedule). | |
| 82 | IDIQ | SOW | Chapter 3, p. 12, last paragraph | Instructor Support | Can CMS confirm expectation of what data for each individual user learner is expected to be tracked in the LMS and for what duration of time is this data to be retained in LMS? | same as current data; 15 years is expected to be held. | |
| 83 | IDIQ | SOW | Chapter 5, p. 14 | Instructional Design Services | The RFP states, “The Instrument/Item Development Activity represents those activities associated with developing, implementing, modifying, refining, or enhancing data items/elements within a data collection instrument as well as ensuring data element consistency, when able, across the settings that use data collection vehicles.” | ||
| Are the Instrument/Item Development Activities described in 5.A., 5.B., 5.C., and 5.D. applicable to Instructional Design Services? | Yes, but only invoked by a Task Order | ||||||
| 84 | IDIQ | SOW | Chapter 5, p. 14 | Instructional Design Services | Please clarify how CMS envisions instructional design services involved in the development of health assessment-based instruments and/or question banks, and which include data element items that are based on quality measurement domains, concepts, and priorities defined in each TO SOW. | Typically CMS program personnel deal more with this type of data which can indicate performance issues in the field. | |
| 85 | IDIQ | SOW | Chapter 5.A | Development of Data Collection Tool/Assessment Instrument & Associated Instructions | The Development of a Data Collection Tool/Assessment Instrument as described is an unusual requirement to fall under Instructional Design Services. |
a) Is the intent to collect data relative to an Instructional Needs Assessment and Evaluation?
b) Please elaborate on the desired outcomes of this Task. a) Yes.
b) To enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of our training program.
| 86 | IDIQ | SOW | Chapter 6 | Training Support- Coordination of Hotel, Audio Visual Onsite Support and Logistics | a) Will the contractor, in any task, take over an existing SRS? | |
| b) Are other proposed solutions acceptable, so long as they meet CMS’ intent and expectations? | a) The contractor will take over the SRS support function. CMS does have SRS GFM. |
b) Yes assuming it does meet specs.
| 87 | IDIQ | SOW | Chapter 7 | Editorial Support Services | The RFP speaks of copyright releases and the keeping of student transcripts, are there special requirements related to those records and for back up security related to catastrophic events? For example, does CMS want the contractors to keep paper records of handouts and training materials, or a second operating location for electronic backups to all system documents, student records and training materials? | Yes | |
| 88 | IDIQ | SOW | Chapter 8 | Tasks | What are the typical Periods of Performance for the Task Orders? | Specific to each task order | |
| 89 | IDIQ | SOW | H, L.14 | Technical Proposal Instructions (Volume I), C. Key Personnel and Section H Key Personnel | Can CMS confirm that a Principal Investigator is required as Key Personnel for the IDIQ and indicate in which areas this person would be utilized? Section H and L.14 provide different direction for addressing this requirement. | See revised section L.14.C of the attached RFP. | |
| 90 | IDIQ | SOW | L.2, p. 85, 86, L.12, p. 90 | Responsible Prospective Contractor Submission and Proposal Organization | Section L.2 pages 85 and 86 state that a Responsible Prospective Contractor Plan “shall be submitted in no more than a five (5) page Executive Summary in the Business Proposal.” Section L.12 page 90 Proposal Organization does not call for a Business Proposal. | ||
| Should the contractor plan be included in the Management Plan and Corporate Capacity section? | Include the contractor plan in the business proposal for each task order. | ||||||
| 91 | IDIQ | SOW | Chapter 2, 2.B | Fundamental Activities | Is there a budgetary expectation on how much face-to-face training can be done? Is the expectation to replace face-to-face training with synchronous or asynchronous courses/web-based trainings? | Budget impacts the design of training, but we will continue to have traditional training designs for the foreseeable future. | |
| 92 | IDIQ | SOW | Chapter 2, 2.B | Fundamental Activities | Are all of the online courses SCORM 1.2, SCORM 2004, or AICC compliant? | No, unless the product is be hosted in our LMS | |
| 93 | IDIQ | SOW | Chapter 2, 2.B | Fundamental Activities | Do the recorded webinars have to be SCORM or AICC compliant? | No, unless the product is be hosted in our LMS - RK | |
| 94 | IDIQ | SOW | Chapter 2, 2.B | Fundamental Activities | How frequently are the courses in question updated and/or historically, how frequently have the courses in question been updated? | Very small updates happen all the time. | |
| 95 | IDIQ | SOW | Chapter 5, 5.D | Data Collection Instrument/Item Development Costs | Does CMS have documentation on its implementation of the ISD/AIDDE process? | No | |
| 96 | IDIQ | SOW | Chapter 6 | Training Support - Coordination of Hotel, Audio Visual Onsite Support and Logistics | Will the logistic services team be expected to schedule airline travel and reservations for instructions and staff as well as the training venues? | It would be more informative to look at Task Orders in relation to these type requirements | |
| 97 | IDIQ | SOW | Chapter 6 | Training Support - Coordination of Hotel, Audio Visual Onsite Support and Logistics | The government has standard rates for per diem and lodging. How do those apply to the logistics services in this contract? | Use government standard rates when formulating proposal. | |
| 98 | IDIQ | SOW | Chapter 6 | Training Support - Coordination of Hotel, Audio Visual Onsite Support and Logistics | Can the government share a list of the states in which the courses were taught and the frequency by state to help estimate travel costs? | Roughly fifty percent are held in Baltimore, Maryland area the rest spread across the country | |
| 99 | IDIQ | SOW | Chapter 6 | Training Support - Coordination of Hotel, Audio Visual Onsite Support and Logistics | Can the government provide a list of the hotels and venues that have been used for training in the past? | No, that could be considered an endorsement. | |
| 100 | IDIQ | SOW | Chapter 6 | Training Support - Coordination of Hotel, Audio Visual Onsite Support and Logistics | Will all audio and video recording and conferencing equipment and the Student Response Systems be provided by the government? | CMS will provide the SRS. CMS will not provide AV & related conferencing equipment | |
| 101 | IDIQ | SOW | Chapter 6 | Training Support - Coordination of Hotel, Audio Visual Onsite Support and Logistics | Does CMS have existing digital audio and video editing facilities for use by the contractor in producing online pod casts and video course? | No. CMS has a studio but it is not for walk in use by vendors. | |
| 102 | IDIQ | M.2.b | General Procedures | Task Order 0001 technical response is mandatory. Can the government clarify what volumes of the Task 0001 TO must be submitted? M.2.b lists “technical proposal” in parentheses in the bulleted list. However, Task 0001 itself makes no such distinction and seems to require a full submission. Are all three volumes of Task 0001 to be submitted with the proposal response? Can the government confirm that Task 0001 is not part of the proposal’s 60-page limit? | T0001 is a separate submission from the IDIQ submission; therefore not included in the IDIQ 60 page limit. T0001 has its own 30 page limit for the technical proposal. Please refer to Attachment J.1-A for T0001 submission instructions. Per J.1-A, "The Offeror’s proposal submission shall consist of: Volume I – Technical Proposal, Volume II – Business Proposal, Volume III – Conflict of Interest Proposal" |
| 103 | IDIQ | M.2.g | General Procedures | The government says it will evaluate Task orders 0002 – 0005 “once the pool of contractors is selected”. Are respondents required to submit responses to those task orders with their proposals in anticipation of that post selection evaluation? Can the government confirm these are not part of the proposal’s 60-page limit? As in the question above, are all three volumes required for each Task Order? | Refer to J attachments for instructions for each task order. | ||
| 104 | IDIQ | For past performance, if a CPARS record exists for a past performance example, is CMS expecting a PPQ to be submitted from the customer (in addition to the CPARS entry)? | PPQs are optional. | ||||
| 105 | IDIQ | Chapter 5 | Chapter 5 is titled 'Instructional Design Services' but almost none of the text in that chapter actually has anything to do with the topic. Is this a misprint or was the wrong text pasted into the chapter? | Chapter 5 indicates the requirement for using ISD to develop and enhance training for health care surveyors. However Chapter 5 does specify atypical data gathering procedures for ISD but used often by CMS. | |||
| 106 | T0001 | Business Proposal | II | “If the Government proposes awarding a cost type task order, the offeror must provide proof it has a federally approved accounting system as well as a copy of its most recent approved indirect cost rate agreement from its cognizant federal agency. “ | |||
| Would the Govt. please consider and advise if a vendor can submit SF 1408 (or equivalent) that is prepared and certified by an independent entity? Would the Government consider the proposal as valid offer that confirms to the Government solicitation requirements? | No. Adequacy must be determined based on a government audit of the system. | ||||||
| 107 | T0001 | Business Proposal | II.B | Fringe Benefits (as appropriate) | a) In the absence of an indirect cost rate agreement from a cognizant Federal Agency, can a vendor submit SF 1408 (or equivalent) that is prepared and certified by an independent entity? | ||
| b) Would the offer/proposal be considered valid that confirms to the Government solicitation requirements? | No. Adequacy must be determined based on a government audit of the system. | ||||||
| 108 | T0001 | Business Proposal | J.1-A, II | Business Proposal Format | a) Page 5 item B in the Task order 0001 (Attachment J.1-A) states that the contractor must provide a copy of the most current indirect cost rate agreement from a cognizant federal agency. T0001 is firm fixed price, is this requirement necessary? |
b) Page 6 item C 2 in the Task order 0001 (Attachment J.1-A) states that a certificate of current cost or pricing data is required. T0001 is firm fixed price, is this requirement necessary?
c) Page 7 item F in the Task order 0001 (Attachment J.1-A) states that the contractor must provide a copy of the most current indirect cost rate agreement from a cognizant federal agency. T0001 is firm fixed price, is this requirement necessary?
| d) Page 7 item G in the Task order 0001 (Attachment J.1-A) states that the contractor must provide a copy of the most current indirect cost rate agreement from a cognizant federal agency. And to provide leave calculations applicable to the task order. T0001 is firm fixed price, is this requirement necessary? | Yes, this information is necessary. | |||||
| 109 | T0001 | Business Proposal | J.1-A, p. 3 | Section C Staffing | The fifth bullet calls for "Two Technical Writer/SMEs - 3.73FTE". | |
| Does the government anticipate the need for just 1.73 SME FTEs for the entire effort in addition to two technical writers? | This is the minimum requirement indicator within a dynamic environment. | |||||
| 110 | T0001 | Business Proposal | J.1-A, p. 5 | Section II Business Proposal Format | The TORP states that "the offeror shall support their total cost or price with a functional Microsoft Excel spreadsheet breakdown of costs by SOW chapter/task." | |
| Please clarify if the government requires that the costs are to broken out by a) the chapters from the prime contract statement of work (SOW) or b) the task areas listed in the Task SOW. | You are only providing pricing/cost information for the required task order 0001 and any other task orders you plan on bidding on. | |||||
| 111 | T0001 | Business Proposal | J.1-A, p. 5, p. 11 | Section II.D. Travel, Section IV. Task Order Type | Page 5 of the TORP states that “travel costs proposed shall be reimbursed on a cost reimbursement basis” while page 11 states that “The Government proposes awarding a single Firm Fixed Price (FFP) type Task Order.” |
a. Please clarify the government’s intent for type of award.
b. Given the uncertainties inherent in instructional design methodologies, travel costs, and ODCs, would the Government consider a cost type award for Task Order 0001? a) Firm Fixed Price is the anticipated award type for T0001
b) No.
| 112 | T0001 | Business Proposal | J.1-B, p. 13 | Task 1b(7B) Implementation of 2012 edition of LSC – SOM and LSC Form Revisions | The TORP states that the level of effort for this task “Includes 360 hours forms revisions and 200 hours SOM revisions for SMEs, ISD, Project leads.” | |
| Is this anticipated level of effort (LOE) in addition to the LOE specified in J.1-A Section 1.C. Staffing on page 3? | The LOE listed in the SOW is for guidance. |
The proposal should be based on the information listed under staffing in J.1-A.
| 113 | T0001 | General | I. | Technical Proposal Format (Volume I) | Section states in part: The four (4) sections combined shall be no more than sixty (30) single-spaced (one-sided) pages. Should offerors assume ‘sixty (30)’ should read ‘thirty (30)’? | The correct wording should be "The four (4) sections combined shall be no more than thirty (30) single-sided pages." | |
| 114 | T0001 | General | I. | Technical Proposal Format (Volume I) | Section states in part: Type font should be no smaller than Times New Roman 12 point…, should offerors assume font size minimum for graphics and tables can be 10 point as defined in the IDIQ instructions? | yes | |
| 115 | T0001 | General | I. Technical Proposal Format (Volume I) | C. Staffing | Question on how specific FTE numbers were derived. Are the numbers derived from a basis of 1840 hours for an FTE? | This is the total hours 40rs X 52 weeks = 2080, minus holidays, personal leave and sick leave provides us with 1800 hrs per FTE. | |
| 116 | T0001 | General | I.D. | Management Plan and Corporate Capacity | Section states in part: 1. Individual TO needs will dictate specific management, quality assurance and staffing plans, but the Offeror shall describe a reasonable approach to spanning all settings of care and domains of care, taking into consideration that individual TO needs will dictate specific management, quality assurance and staffing plans. | ||
| Does the CMS expect that ‘plans’ are to be at a deliverable level with such detail as gant charts to meet the requirement of a ‘plan’, or is CMS seeking a detailed and targeted ‘approach’ to the requirements of this specific TO that explains how our approach will accomplish the required efforts? | CMS needs to understand your approach to getting work completed overall. | ||||||
| 117 | T0001 | General | I.D. | Management Plan and Corporate Capacity | Section states in part: 1. Individual TO needs will dictate specific management, quality assurance and staffing plans, but the Offeror shall describe a reasonable approach to spanning all settings of care and domains of care, taking into consideration that individual TO needs will dictate specific management, quality assurance and staffing plans. | ||
| If CMS requires a detailed and accurate ‘plan’ at the deliverable level, including gant charts and other artifacts, could these be presented in an Appendix so as to not consume valuable page count? | CMS is requesting a detailed approach that explains how you will accomplish the work. | ||||||
| 118 | T0001 | General | J.1-A | I. Technical Proposal Format | Is the page limit for TO# 0001 30 or 60 pages? Please confirm. | The IDIQ technical proposal is 60 pages, single sided. |
All Task Order technical proposals are 30 pages, single sided.
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