1301-26-R-IFBD-00071

The Mississippi State Department of Health is requesting bids on comprehensive language access services to support public health programs statewide under IFB 1301-26-R-IFBD-00071, with bids due July 1, 2026 (note: one attachment lists July 2, 2026 at 10:00 a.m. CST as the deadline). The central compliance filter is HIPAA, GINA, and HITECH Act compliance coupled with NIST SP 800-53 Rev. 5 Moderate baseline controls and SOC 2 Type II or FedRAMP Moderate accreditation for any cloud environments; all protected health information must be encrypted at rest using FIPS 140-2/140-3 validated AES-256 or stronger, in transit via TLS 1.2 or higher, and remain within the continental United States.

The scope encompasses onsite interpretation, remote interpretation via phone and video, American Sign Language services, and multilingual document translation across more than 40 language pairs including Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Vietnamese, and others specified in bid forms. Services must be available 24/7/365, including after-hours and emergency coverage. Bidders must demonstrate minimum five years of experience providing similar services, financial resources, and capacity to perform. All contractor personnel must carry professional liability and general liability insurance in amounts commensurate with professional responsibilities.

The contract term begins upon execution and ends at a date to be specified, with potential renewal at MSDH's discretion for one-year periods, with cumulative term not to exceed five years. Pricing shall be itemized as rates per interpreter for onsite services (two-hour minimum per engagement), rates per interpreter for remote interpreting services, and rates per word for document translation. The contractor bears all travel costs for onsite assignments unless approved in writing by MSDH. Payment is made electronically via the State of Mississippi's system within 45 calendar days of invoice receipt. The contract is subject to legislative appropriation and may be terminated for convenience with ten business days' notice or for default if deficiencies are not cured within 30 days of notice. Award is anticipated July 14, 2026. Contact Dorthy Young, Chief Procurement Officer, at 601-576-7954 or procurement@msdh.ms.gov.