WIC Mobile App Response Form.docx

RFP # 202608127

Maine WIC Mobile Application Software and Support Services

PROPOSED SERVICES RESPONSE FORM

Bidder Name:

INSTRUCTIONS: Bidder must complete this form to discuss the Services to be Provided referenced in Part II of the RFP and what the Bidder will offer, including:

· A description of the methods and resources the Bidder will use and how each task involved will be accomplished.

· A description of how the expectations and/or desired outcomes as a result of these services will be achieved.

· If subcontractors are involved, Bidders must clearly identify the work each will perform.

Bidders may expand each of the response (white) spaces within this document in order to provide a full response to each requirement.

A. Mobile Application (Application) User Availability

1. Ensure the proposed application is provided free/at no cost to Participants to use with or without a registered Maine WIC eWIC EBT card account.

B. Mobile Application Product Functionality

1. Displays content to Participants to promote key WIC benefit knowledge areas including approved WIC products, and authorized store and farmer sale site/market locations to maximize benefit redemption.

2. Be fully developed, readily available, and certified for use by current App Stores (i.e., Android, iOS, Google Play, etc.).

3. Provides WIC information to a diverse array of Participants enrolled in WIC.

4. Supports English and enables WIC to fully interpret existing and new features, buttons, and Banners into any language in use in the State.

5. Supports, at minimum, Amharic, Arabic, English, Spanish, French, Haitian Creole, Korean, Lingala, Burmese, Nepalese, Oromo, Dari, Pashto, Portuguese, Russian, Somali, Swahili, Tigrinya, Ukrainian, Vietnamese, Simplified Chinese, and Traditional Chinese languages, professionally interpreted.

a. Future languages incorporated at the request of other State agencies that use the same application must be added at no additional cost to the Department.

b. Must be accessible and intuitive to Participants with limited English proficiency.

6. Application text must be created, confirmed, and posted for an audience with a sixth (6th) grade reading level.

7. Detects the User’s mobile phone language setting and default language displayed for available translated versions.

a. Users must have the option to accept a default language setting or select a different language in the device’s default language.

i. Selected language must be displayed seamlessly in all buttons and other controls, menu options, Banner announcements, recalls, and other display items.

8. Provides Participants with their WIC food benefit balance.

a. When a Participant’s eWIC EBT card is registered with the application, the application must:

i. Updated the Participant’s balance and be visible in the application as made available by Maine WIC.

ii. Indicate if the product retrieved has a balance in the Participant’s food prescription.

b. If the Participants eWIC EBT card is not registered, the application must indicate an authorized product, but the Participant may or may not have the product prescribed in their specific benefit set.

9. Provides Participants the WIC Approved Product List (APL) with the full list of available products eligible for WIC purchases.

10. Barcode scanning capability to scan a product UPC/PLU to determine if a product is on the Maine WIC APL.

11. Allows Participants to use full or partial keyword(s) and/or full or partial UPC/PLU to search the entire APL.

12. Includes food calculators for Participants to calculate the best way to redeem full food benefits by calculating different package sizes of:

a. Dairy Products

b. Whole Grain

c. Produce

d. Other calculators that may be offered as standard application functionality that are available and will increase food package redemption.

13. Provides the Participant with the ability to communicate with the awarded Bidder’s helpdesk or customer support and Maine WIC.

a. Provide a tool allowing Participants to communicate product requests, suggestions, or problems encountered in store or with the application/product to Maine WIC while using the application.

b. Provide a tool that provides Participants with the ability to communicate suggestions or problems, or request production support from the awarded Bidder using the application.

14. Provides clinic information such as clinic name, address/location, and telephone number, as well as a map feature of the clinic location.

15. Displays a list of WIC clinics Statewide with the ability to provide directions to each location and the ability for the User to search or filter to locate a WIC clinic in a variety of ways, including:

a. Full or partial keyword;

b. Distance;

c. Driving directions;

d. Filtered list by town/county; and/or

e. Other methods as available.

16. Display a list of WIC authorized stores, farmer sale sites/markets with the ability to provide directions to location where a Participant may shop for and redeem issued WIC benefits.

a. Allows Users to search or filter to locate an authorized store or farmer sale site/market a variety of ways, including:

i. Full or partial keywords;

ii. Store or farmer sale site/market;

iii. City or County;

iv. Distance; and

v. Other methods as available.

17. Supports Maine WIC and the Local WIC Offices operations.

a. Provide required and ad hoc messaging from Maine WIC to Participants, including:

i. Scheduled appointment reminders.

ii. Scheduled missed appointment notifications reminding the Participant to reschedule the missed appointment.

iii. Ad hoc Push Notifications to support Maine WIC communication needs.

iv. Informational Banners to inform Participants of special events, seasons, or messaging at the request of Maine WIC.

v. Allowing Users the ability to opt in or out of messaging and Push Notifications.

b. Provide other public health, nutritional, and development functionality and features, including:

i. Helpful, easy recipes and lifestyle tips that build on education topics and encourage usage of WIC foods and ingredients in meal preparation methods to improve overall family health and lifestyle.

ii. Featured food groups and products that align with health objectives such as avoiding food allergies, Potatoes USA ,and other boards and groups that support WIC eligible foods that contribute to public health and nutrition guilds.

iii. U.S. CDC’s Learn the Signs as a resource to parents to be aware of developmental milestones.

iv. Other boards, food groups, non-profits and public health oriented topics and content that promote nutrition and health among the State’s most vulnerable.

v. Required USDA FNS mandated messaging provided by Maine WIC.

18. Providing timely and responsive application production support to support the Maine WIC mission objectives.

a. Provide production support contact information for reporting technical issues, functional questions, and enhancement requests and billing.

b. Create Banners and Push Notifications that support and fulfill Maine WIC’s messaging requirements for new and existing communication campaigns.

c. Provide Support and transition to a new Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) processor during Maine WIC EBT conversion timeline, as applicable.

d. Act as subject matter expert and provide messaging, propose content and graphics that align with Maine and nationwide WIC agency standards and expectations.

e. Inform Maine WIC of Participant communication and issues reported, via the application’s built in communication feature, which are not typically sent to Maine WIC, including, but not limited to shopping issues, product enhancement requests and suggestions for improvements.

19. Option of introducing new features that may be incorporated with a change request, including:

a. Transactions at farmer sale sites/markets.

b. Secure document uploads.

c. Online ordering and home delivery.

d. Other requests that evolve as technology and USDA FNS funding may direct or be provide to Maine WIC.

Bidder must describe other functionalities and features in the proposed mobile application that are currently in production for other states that are not specifically detailed in other sections of this document.

Bidder must provide a technology or project roadmap that highlights anticipated and planned work to deliver new features for the duration of the contract.

C. Reports

1. Track and record all data/information necessary to complete the required reports listed in Table 1:

Table 1 – Required Reports

· Indicates click counts for each feature and ad hoc messages viewed while using the application for the month and the language the page(s) were viewed in.

2. Submit all the required reports to the Department in accordance with the timelines established in Table 2:

Table 2 – Required Reports Timelines

DHHS RFP Proposed Services Response Form (Rev. 10/2025)