Recovery - Consistency in Medicare Contractor Outreach Material for ARRA Related Materials

This notice is provided for informational purposes only. This opportunity is only available to LCB Solutions, LLC. CMS intends to modify an existing contract with LCB Solutions. The contract is for the development and maintenance of Medicare Learning Network (MLN) Articles that communicate changes in Medicare and Medicaid policies to the Medicare provider community. The contract requirements will be modified to require the development and maintenance of MLN articles specifically for changes in Medicare and/or Medicaid policies mandated by The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. The contract being modified was originally awarded competitively and is a Time and Materials type contract due to the fact that the nature of work is unpredictable. The requirements as modified continue to be unpredictable in nature because the amount of time required to develop the MLN articles varies greatly depending on the complexity of the policy changes, subsequent clearance process and iterations. Since the Contractor's accounting system was deemed adequate for accumulating and billing costs under Government contracts by the Defense Contract Audit Agency in December 2008, the amount for the performance of the ARRA requirements will be negotiated on a cost plus fixed fee (CPFF) basis; since per FAR 16.6 (c) (1), a time-and-materials contract provides no positive profit incentive to the contractor for cost control or labor efficiency. Further, in accordance with FAR 16.6 (d) a time-and-materials contract may be used only if the Contracting Officer prepares a determination and findings that no other contract type is suitable. Considering the fact that the Contractor now has an approved accounting system, there is no justification for the use of T&M for the modified requirements.