Amendment 02 W912JF23R0026 QandA.pdf

Amendment 02

29-SEP-2023

Combined Synopsis / Solicitation W912JF‐23‐R‐0026 Behavioral Health Services

Amendment 02 is 7 pages not including the updated Combined Synopsis/Solicitation document.

The due date for the submission of offers is not extended.

The purpose of Amendment 02 is:

1. Delete FAR 52.219-4, Notice of Price Evaluation Preference for HUBZone Small Business Concern.

2. Provide an updated Technical Exhibit 3

3. Provide a consolidated Questions and Answer document for questions received prior to the suspense for questions as stated in the solicitation.

4. Provide an updated Combined Synopsis/Solicitation document incorporating the changes from items #1 thru #3 above.

Questions and Answers Document

Question 1:

With reference to the 24/7/365 support, assessment, and referral services, is a crisis line sufficient to fulfill this requirement?

Answer 1:

Telephonic support and/or availability is expected during non‐business hours; the 24/7 aspect relates to the health providers being available via a government issued cell phone. The government is not expecting a full service mental health crisis line for this requirement. In person services are expected during business hours Monday‐Friday (ref. section 1.4.1 of PWS).

Per section 1.4.1 of the PWS weekend in‐person will be expected during drill weekends / pre‐ mobilizations tasks etc.

Question 2:

Contract Type: Could you kindly confirm whether this solicitation is for a personal or non-personal contract? This information will help us tailor our proposal accordingly.

Answer 2: Non-personal.

Question 3:

Clinical Criteria: Considering the diverse range of skills and education among Behavioral Health Specialists, we would greatly appreciate it if you could provide a clear definition of the specific clinical qualifications you are seeking for this contract. Understanding this in detail will help us identify the most suitable candidates for the requirements.

Answer 3:

Please see 1.4.7 Special Qualifications of PWS. Basically, they need to have at least a master’s degree in behavioral sciences. They need to be currently licensed to independently practice in the state of Arkansas for 2 or more years. Examples are LCSW, LMFT, LPC, Licensed Psychologist.

Question 4:

Hours of Operations: To better plan our resources and ensure the seamless delivery of services, could you please clarify the expected hours of operation for the awarded contract? Any information you can provide on this matter would be highly beneficial.

Answer 4:

Our duty hours are 0800-1630 central time. There is some flexibility in this range. After-hours crisis consultation, if conducted, will count towards their overall time. Compressed schedule is an option.

Question 5:

Credentialing Package: We currently have Behavioral Health Specialists on staff who are practicing clinicians. To ensure compliance with the solicitation's requirements, could you inform us if the expectation is for the awarded specialists to be practicing clinicians as well? If yes, we would appreciate receiving a list of documents that constitute the credentialing package, as this will allow us to prepare and compile the necessary credentials accordingly.

Answer 5:

Please see 1.4.7 for licensing requirements.

Question 6:

Scope of Services: Section 3.0 of the solicitation appears to be requesting personnel and equipment, while the clinical section seems to focus solely on Behavioral Health services. We seek clarification on whether the scope of work includes additional items such as medical records and ancillary services. Understanding this distinction will help us better address the requirements in our proposal.

Answer 6:

Necessary equipment (Computers, phones etc.) software programs for medical records are government provided.

Question 7:

Reference Section PWS p. 82

MRE/SRP/In Office - 3500 Evaluation Screening Units: Assuming this is the initial Behavioral Health Screening using the TAPAS standard instrument using the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Batter testing platform, is this correct?

Answer 7:

No to TAPAS. We have a list of conditions which the army requires us to profile. For SRPs, we use Army and Combatant Commander medical standards.

Question 8:

Reference Section PWS p. 82

Behavioral Health - 2000 Evaluation Units: Assuming that each unit is 60-120 minutes of time with SM performing additional evaluations because the TAPAS screening identified something requiring further analysis, is this correct? Or are these pre-deployment Level 2 assessments?

Answer 8:

These are typically 20-30 min evals of bio/psychosocial/spiritual needs and linkage to appropriate resources.

Question 9:

Reference Section PWS p. 62, 1.4.1 For calls before and after business hours, we are assuming that the contractor will bring a toll-free number, an IVR, and an existing CRM (e.g., our GCC Microsoft Dynamics or govcloud Salesforce tools) to document calls, is this correct? This would allow us to use existing call center capabilities to support the 24/7 call center requirements (and make it more cost-effective). Or would you like us to provide designated resources to support the call center 24/7 utilizing the government's phone number, IVR, and CRM tools?

Answer 9:

The government will supply mobile phones to contractors for duty/after duty hours. Rotational schedule for on-call. These are typically rare and are more consultative than formal crisis assessments. The government is not seeking a toll free call center.

Question 10:

TECHNICAL EXHIBIT 3 ANNUAL ESTIMATED QUANTITY is that the number of hours of service to be performed?

Answer 10:

No. Please refer to updated Exhibit 3 with additional notes.

Question 11:

Can you provide a description of what the Medical Readiness Events consist of?

Answer 11:

Medical Readiness events consist of annual Physical Health Assessments (PHAs) for all Soldiers and or pre-deployment Soldier Readiness Processing (SRPs). These are weekend events performed during Soldier monthly drills. See updated Exhibit 3 for contact expectations.

Question 12:

Reference 1.4.1 Does the government expect to have 1 BH provider at each of the listed locations?

Answer 12:

Please refer to the PWS sections 1.4.1. The service hours and locations are listed in section

1.4.1. Services are required to be provided concurrently at the locations and times listed in the

PWS.

Question 13

Reference 1.4.12 Will the government reimburse travel costs? How often will the BH providers travel? How often will the BH providers be in North Little Rock, Fayetteville, or Jonesboro?

Answer 13:

Behavioral Health Provider (1) will travel 11 times per year to Ft. Chaffee for drill weekend support (2-night stay). There will be two Chaffee events requiring Behavioral Health Provider support annually (2-night stay). There may be up to 10 “daytrips” per year for each BHP to visit supported armories. Offerors shall incorporate travel costs with their proposal pricing.

Question 14:

Reference 1.4.7 Can the government elaborate upon what is mean by the “application of clinical mental health principles”? May the BH provider have a license from another state considering the services are provided on government installations?

Answer 14:

Need to be licensed in AR. Someone independently licensed to practice at the master’s level or higher is considered capable to apply the “principles.”

Question 15:

Reference Technical Exhibit 3, Given the estimated workload does the government estimate 5 full time equivalent contractors?

Answer 15:

The government cannot provide an estimate as to the number of full-time equivalent contractors necessary to perform this function by regulation. Please refer to the updated Exhibit 3 and Question #13 above.

Question 16:

Please confirm the set aside is small business.

Answer 16:

Per Classification on SAM

Original Set Aside: Historically Underutilized Business (HUBZone) Sole Source (FAR 19.13)

Updated Set Aside: Total Small Business Set‐Aside (FAR 19.5)

Question 17:

Who is the incumbent and what is the former contract number?

Answer 17:

Contract #: V797P-7248A Task Order #: W912JF19F0069 Award Value: $936,286.40 (Base + 3 12-Month Option Periods) Awardee: Quality Staffing Solutions, Inc.

Question 18:

Please confirm how many FTE's are expected to execute this work? Does the government have personnel at each of the 3 locations? If so, how many at the different locations?

Answer 18: Please review previous questions and answers, ref. Question #12.

Question 19:

Is travel expected? What are estimated travel costs per year?

Answer 19:

Please refer to Questions 13 and 17. Travel is expected. Previously the government reimbursed travel costs, however, we are no longer allowed to price reimbursable items on Firm Fixed Price Contracts per NGB Policy.

Question 20:

How many clinicians do you anticipate needing during the normal work week to provide the support to the service members and their families?

Answer 20: Please review questions 13 and 17 clarification and estimated travel.

Question 21:

How many clinicians do you anticipate needing during the Medical Readiness Event?

Answer 21: Please review question and answer 13.

Question 22:

How long after informing the contractor they won the contract will the clinicians need to be onboarded?

Answer 22:

Please review solicitation paragraph 1.11.