Written Questions and Answers.pdf

CHARLES D. BAKER

Governor

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts Executive Office of Elder Affairs One Ashburton Place, 5th Floor Boston, Massachusetts 02108

Tel: (617) 727-7750

Fax: (617) 727-9368 www.mass.gov/elders

KARYN E. POLITO

Lieutenant Governor

ALICE F. BONNER

Secretary

Elder Abuse Reporting Hotline Answering and Processing Service, Bid Number: BD-17-1040-1040C-1040L-12489

Questions and Answers

Responses to questions asked during the Bidder’s Conference on March 13, 2017:

Question: Do you have any information on the average length of a protective service call?

Answer: Attachment B includes a script currently used by PS call center staff to complete protective services calls. There is no clear data, but EOEA estimates that each call could take between 20-45 minutes (depending on the reporter and the nature of the report) using the script. Potential bidders may choose to review the script and calculate an estimate of how long it may take to complete and process a call.

Question: When will EOEA make an announcement on the selected bidder?

Answer: Section 2 of the RFR, p.9 includes a procurement calendar. The announcement of a selected bidder is estimated to be released on May 1, 2017.

Question: What is the name of the current online reporting system?

Answer: The online reporting system is currently contracted through a company called Mediware and the program is called APS.

Question: What is the term of the current contract with Mediware?

Answer: EOEA’s contract to utilize this software system dates back to 2005 and has been previously re-procured. EOEA currently has options to extend this contract until 2019.

Question: Who is the current holder of the contract that is currently providing after hours services?

Answer: Holy Family Hospital in Methuen, Massachusetts currently provides Non-Business hours services. Holy Family Hospital is owned by the Steward Health Care.

Question: Does Holy Family provide 24 hour service?

Answer: No. Holy Family receives calls during Non-Business hours (nights, weekends and holidays).

http://www.mass.gov/elders

Submitted Written Questions and Answers

1. “Will the EOEA (and/or the partner PS agencies) provide a roster of on-call staff if the hotline receives a report of imminent harm or risk? If so, how many on-call staff are assigned for each daytime and after hours shift? Are there any other circumstances when the on-call staff should be contacted?”

Response: Each PS agency is fully staffed during business hours, and has designated on-call staff during non-business hours. The number of on-call staff members is dependent on the size of the PS Agency, but there will always be at least one staff member on-call per agency. The Contractor will be provided with contact information for each PS agency for both business hours and non-business hours contact information. Generally, hotline staff does not need to contact a PS agency for reasons other than to alert them to report of imminent harm or risk.

2. “What are the factors which will be considered when EOEA decides whether to choose an after-hours or a 24x7 solution?”

Response: EOEA will review information submitted by each bidder and assess which solution provides the Commonwealth with the best value, as that term is described in the RFR.

3. “What kind of training (subject matter & length of training) will be provided to the successful vendor?”

Response: EOEA anticipates providing training on all necessary topics including, but not limited to, conducting elder abuse intakes over the phone, entering data into the online system, and contacting on-call protective services workers. These trainings will be provided both during the initial implementation of the contract and as needed during the duration of the contract.

4. “Please provide a sample of an annual report.”

Response: A template for the required annual report under section 5.2(B) of the RFR has not yet been developed. However, it is anticipated that the report will likely require a compilation of the statistical and quality assurance information required by the RFR.

5. “Will the agency accept annual Compiled financial statements (reviewed & compiled by an

Accounting firm), or tax returns in lieu of audited financials?”

Response: Bidders must submit all required documents included on the RFR Submission Checklist (Attachment 1 of the RFR). Submissions that do not include required documents will be subject to section 7.1 of the RFR which states “EOEA reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to determine if non-compliance with a Mandatory Specification is insignificant or can be easily corrected.”

6. “Is an Independent Auditor’s report required, and if so, is the requirement that we use a State auditor?”

Response: The Annual Audit of the Financial Statements is not an audit the State Auditor’s Office would conduct. The requirement is fulfilled by an Independent Public Accounting Firm with which the bidder would contract.

7. “Will we have access to client (patient history or report history) files from Elder Abuse and/or other agencies such as DDS, DMH, DPPC, MRC to resolve issues?”

Response: No, the Contractor would not have access to other agency client data. Under a contract with EOEA, the Contractor would have access to the secure PS database which stores all elder abuse reports for Commonwealth. The Contractor would not have access to any additional client records. This RFR was set up as a Limited User Contract, meaning other state agencies named in the RFR may utilize the RFR to enter into a contract with the Contractor; in such an event, access to client files of an agency other than EOEA would be negotiated directly between the Contractor and that agency.

8. “Will the online reporting solution contract run concurrent with this contract? Please confirm that the EOEA will be responsible for obtaining the software licenses required for system access. Is the contractor allocated a specific/limited number of licenses or will the EOEA obtain the number of licenses proposed by the contractor’s preferred staffing allocation?”

Response: EOEA’s contract to utilize the current software system dates back to 2005 and has been previously re-procured. EOEA currently has options to extend this contract until 2019. The contract for the EOEA PS online data base will continue to be managed by Elder Affairs. EOEA will be responsible for obtaining all software user licenses necessary for the Contractor to utilize the system as part of this contract. There is no allocated number of user licenses at this time;

EOEA will obtain the necessary user licenses for the Contractor to perform the obligations under any contract.

9. “Will the PS agency contracts run concurrent to contract? Is the hotline contractor expected to make referrals to the PS agencies or other partners if the caller has a non-abuse/neglect allegation reporting need (i.e. in-home meals)?”

Response:

1. PS agency contracts will run concurrent with this Contract in regards to the provision of Protective Services. PS agency contracts to accept elder abuse reports would be adjusted if EOEA selects a bid for 24 hour hotline services.

2. The Contractor is expected to accept elder abuse reports and transfer a call to other state agencies that investigate reports of abuse without ending the call (i.e., a “warm-transfer”) if the reporter contacts the elder abuse hotline by mistake. The Contractor is not expected to complete any additional referrals. However, EOEA expects that callers contacting the Hotline by mistake will be treated in a helpful and professional manner.

10. “How long is the intake training and where will the training take place?”

Response: EOEA anticipates providing training on all necessary topics including, but not limited to, conducting elder abuse intakes over the phone, entering data into the online system, and contacting on-call protective services workers. These trainings will be provided both during the initial implementation of the contract and as needed during the duration of the contract. EOEA anticipates some of the trainings will take place onsite at the vendor location.

11. “Does the service require any forms of communication outside of telephone and TTY such as text or email?”

Response: The contract does not require the provision of services for forms of communication outside of telephone and TTY. If the bidder believes such services could provide a greater value to EOEA, they may be included as part of an alternative proposal in accordance with section 7.3 of the RFR.

12. “Is the use of remote agents permitted?”

Response: The use of remote agents is not expressly prohibited.

13. “Is the Commonwealth opened to the use of new media technologies (web, email, text, etc.) in addition to telephony to capture complaints?”

Response: Yes. If the bidder believes such services would provide a greater value to EOEA, they may be included as part of an alternative proposal in accordance with section 7.3 of the RFR.

14. “Does the EOEA online system offers the ability to capture intake data electronically via an

Application Program Interface (API) or other web service interface?”

Response: The EOEA online system does include an application for the intake of elder abuse reports via an online portal. While EOEA anticipates that this online reporting application will be implemented in April 2017, the use of this system will run concurrently with this Contract.

15. “Please describe any responsibility of the selected Contractor or its staff to provide testimony, production of documents and/or electronic records in connection with the centralized intake in response to a subpoena or any other compulsory legal process in a criminal or civil case.”

Response: EOEA is the official holder of all PS records, including intakes completed by the

Contractor, and would maintain legal responsibility for managing and responding to legal requests for the production of such records. Additionally, during the course of a Protective

Services Case, EOEA and its PS Agencies would ordinarily not rely on the Contractor to provide testimony. Generally, PS investigators, not intake staff, are involved during court cases. While

EOEA cannot guarantee that the Contractor would never be subpoenaed, EOEA would work with the Contractor to respond if this occurred.

16. “Are there any regulations which require centralized hotline call answering personnel to meet certain minimum qualifications? What minimum qualifications are centralized hotline answering personnel required to meet?”

Response: State regulations mandate that EOEA maintain an elder abuse hotline, but they do not specify any minimum qualifications for call answering personnel. All contractual staffing requirements are included in the RFR.

17. “Does EOEA have 24x7x365 support in place for the Protective Services online database and are there existing protocols for reporting and resolving issues with the database?”

Response: EOEA has 24 hour support through its software provider and there are existing protocols for reporting and resolving issues with the database.

18. “What hours does the current PS system have Protective Service Caseworkers available?”

Response: The current PS system has PS Caseworkers available 24 hours a day. Each PS agency has PS Caseworkers on duty during normal business hours (9:00 AM to 5:00 PM). During non-business hours (nights, weekends and holidays), each protective services agency has an on-call PS Caseworkers.