Residential services for children

The State of South Carolina, through the State Fiscal Accountability Authority, is seeking qualified residential services providers for children across multiple state agencies, including the Department of Disabilities and Special Needs (DDSN), Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ), Department of Mental Health (DMH), and the Continuum of Care (COC). The procurement seeks contractors to provide seven distinct service categories: Group Care Intensive Services, Group Care Intensive Services for sex offender treatment, Group Care Intensive Services for Seriously Mentally Ill youth, Group Care Intermediate Services, Group Care Independent Living Services, Therapeutic Foster Care, and Temporary De-escalation Services. Contractors must be licensed by the South Carolina Department of Social Services and capable of providing comprehensive residential care for youth with complex behavioral, emotional, and medical needs. The solicitation requires providers to offer 24-hour residential care, structured programming, individualized treatment plans, educational support, and specialized interventions tailored to each client's specific requirements. Key submission deadlines include a pre-bid conference on August 24, 2023, at 10:00 AM via Microsoft Teams, with questions due by August 24, 2023, at 5:00 PM ET, and proposals due online by September 11, 2023, at 11:00 AM ET, with award notification expected on September 18, 2023.

The procurement does not specify explicit set-aside designations for disadvantaged enterprises, and no incumbent vendors are identified in the documentation. Contractors will be placed on a Qualified Provider List (QPL) with no guaranteed client volume or funding level, and the contract will have an initial one-year term with four potential one-year renewals, creating a maximum five-year contract period from September 29, 2023, to September 28, 2028. Pricing is structured with fixed daily rates per consumer, ranging from $106.00 for Independent Living Services to $307.00 for Seriously Mentally Ill services, with Therapeutic Foster Care rates tiered between $53.41 and $98.60 depending on service level. Contractors must provide their own transportation up to 25 miles one-way, maintain comprehensive insurance with minimum liability coverage of $600,000, and comply with Prison Rape Elimination Act requirements for certain placements. Out-of-state providers are eligible if located within 25 miles of the South Carolina state line, and subsequent bid opportunities will be available in March and September of each year through 2027, with no offers accepted during the final six months of the contract term.