Delaware Health And Social Services DIVISION OF MANAGEMENT SERVICES PROCUREMENT DATE: FEBRUARY 4, 2009 PSC#848 FAMILY HEALTH EPIDEMIOLOGY, RESEARCH AND EVALUATION SERVICES FOR DIVISION OF PUBLIC HEALTH Date Due: FEBRUARY 24, 2009 11:00 AM ADDENDUM # 1 Please Note: THE ATTACHED SHEETS HEREBY BECOME A PART OF THE ABOVE MENTIONED BID. ___________________________ SANDRA S. SKELLEY, CPPO PROCUREMENT ADMINISTRATOR (302)255-9291 _____________________________ Mawuna Gardesey (302) 744-4953 QUESTION RESPONSE 1 Is there an incumbent for this procurement? NO 2 For purposes of budgeting, could the state provide example tasks for the specific activities listed on page 8 of the RFP? DPH has contracts with providers to implement interventions to reduce infant mortality. An example of activity #5 under Scope of Services would be to design and implement an evaluation plan to measure whether the program goals are being met. 3 On page 8 under the Scope of Services, it states that the specific research projects, data priorities and evaluation scope will be selected collaboratively by DPH, the ERE contractor, and key stakeholders and on page 13 under Proposed Methodology and Work Plan, the RFP asks for details related to the approach to carry out the activities described in the Scope of Services, to include specific dates. For purposes of the proposal (i.e., scheduling, staffing, cost), how should this be addressed? The RFP process is intended to identify an ERE contractor with the appropriate skills and experience to accomplish the tasks identified. As part of the process of proving their competence for the job, the ERE contractor is expected to explain what they would do and how they would do it. After a contractor has been selected, the contractor will be invited to enter into negotiation with the state to collaboratively determine which projects will be tackled, how they will be dealt with and what priorities will be observed. 4 Should the budget assume that work will be conducted under each of the seven activities listed under the Scope of Services each year? The activities under the Scope of services are intended to convey a sense of the breadth of the expertise expected of the contractor. It is possible that any or all of these activities would be needed in any given year. 5 On page 13 of the RFP, it states that “No more than 10% of the budget should go toward administrative or indirect costs.” Could the state provide clarification on the definition of “administrative or indirect costs”? For the purpose of this RFP the direct costs are cost of the minimum of 3.0FTEs and the software needed to provide the required services. Administrative support costs and any other costs such as travel, phone, supplies etc. not directly related to providing the required services will be considered administrative or indirect costs. 6 The RFP states that all CD files shall be in PDF and Microsoft Word formats. Are both formats required or can we submit our proposal solely in PDF format? The proposal is required to be in both formats to ensure that at least one version is compatible with state computers. It is important that both versions, are readable by Windows XP 2003 7 Is there a page limit for the proposal? NO Most of our questions are related to the first point of section II (Scope of services): Maintain and improve existing methods of information collection for FHSM statistical analysis 8 What information collection methods is the State using now. Both electronic and manual. 9 Is data collected directly by the state? How? Most of the data is collected by providers either because it is required by state code or by contract. 10 How is data transmitted from agencies contracted by the State? Electronically 11 Is there consistent site to site format and content? There are requirements for consistent format and content but this is not always the case because of the varying levels of sophistication in provider data systems. 12 What are the data collection roles of the State and the ERE? The state is the data collector; the ERE contractor will serve as an agent of the state. 13 What is the expected data collection relationship between the ERE and contractors to the State? The ERE will serve as an agent of the state, except that the ERE contractor will be required to sign confidentiality agreements with the state and potentially with vendors. 14 Will the State act as the interface? Yes. The state will provide introductions identifying the ERE contractor as an agent of the state and request access to data needed to accomplish their required tasks. 15 Will the ERE interact directly with sites? Yes If web based services are developed/initiated: 16 Where will they be deployed? It is possible that web-based data collection will be developed during the life of this contract. If that happens, the services will be deployed at the state or with a contractor who would maintain the system. 17 Are there performance, availability, reliability, and support requirements. N/A Questions related to Section IV G: Proposed methodology and work plan 18 What are the capabilities of the current environment? Excel and SPSS 19 What specific capability and architecture changes are desired/expected in the transition to contractor supplied ERE services? None 20 What continued activity and support does the state expect to provide and for how long. Any continued activity and support will be addressed in contract negotiation after a contractor has been selected. 21 What provisions are expected within the contract for the cost of hardware, software licenses, and operational costs? A contractor is expected to have the necessary equipment to provide the contracted services. If the contractor selected for this project includes the cost of equipment, it is expected that such equipment will be recognized as state property and treated as such. 22 The proposed contract is for 24 months with the possibility of 2 additional years contingent on funding. What is the responsibility of the ERE regarding disposition of data and applications at that point? All data and native files created as a result of this contract belong to the state. All the data and native files must be surrendered to the state at the end of the contract. 27 What is the size of the contract that will be awarded? There is flexibility in the contract amount depending on what is proposed. The contract will range between $100,000 and $150,000 annually. 28 Are the minimum of 3 FTEs identified in the RFP required to be local? NO 29 Based on the state’s level of need, where, among the 7 listed activities will the efforts of the contractor be concentrated? Because of changing priorities in an uncertain fiscal environment, it is difficult to predict with any level of certainty where the efforts of the contractor will be focused. It is imperative that the contractor be able to perform along the whole spectrum of activities listed. 30 How is “subcontractor” defined? For the purposes of this RFP a subcontractor is a person who is not an employee of the contractor but who does work for the contractor by contract. 31 How often are invoices paid? Subject to negotiation, Invoices may be paid, monthly, quarterly or annually. 32 When does the 24-month budget cycle begin? At the commencement of the contract RFP PSC0-848 Pre-Bid Meeting Questions 02/04/09 2 1 of 5