Description
QUESTION SIX Your documents indicate that "the survey shall occur at a date acceptable to both the MLC and the surveying organization". Currently, the XXXX XXXXXX contacts the healthcare organization before the due date of the accreditation resurvey. The corresponding invoice is then mailed approximately 30 days in advance of the survey. However, in 2006, this process will be changing. We are anticipating that the survey will be unannounced. We have not finalized the details of this new process, the impact on government facilities (and related solutions) or the pricing model that may be in place at that time. Please advise of any issues that we need to consider assuming that the Coast Guard surveys would be unannounced as of 2006. ANSWER SIX The XXXX XXXXXX would need to coordinate with the MLC for the survey date based on the anticipated dates provide in the schedule. The MLC will survey the U.S. Coast Guard specific items at that time and would need to coordinate the surveys to occur together to minimize impact to patient care activities in the clinics. Additionally, there are no provisions in the solicitation for advanced payments. QUESTION SEVEN Your documents reference the handling of travel expenses. The XXXX XXXXXXXX does not charge expenses related to survey travel on our survey invoices. However, we do charge applicable branch fees if they are defined in our price list and the situation warrants billing the healthcare organization. ANSWER SEVEN The USCG does not have clinic branches. QUESTION EIGHT Attached to this e-mail is our published price list for all survey types that we currently accredit. Please note that the price list is for 2004 only. Our Board of Commissioners reviews and approves our prices each November that would be effective the upcoming year. The 2005 price list will be available in December 2004. Each year, thereafter, would be published approximately 30 days in advance of the new calendar year. We create our invoices based on information that is contained in these published pricing lists. "Firm fixed price basis" cannot be defined as the fee that is guaranteed today for anything past 2004 as those fees are not yet defined and approved. Please advise if you need additional information on our process or need further clarification. ANSWER EIGHT This contract will be awarded as a firm fixed price basis. All option year prices must be identified in the proposals for evaluation prior to award. QUESTION NINE In order to appropriately estimate the survey fees for you, please refer to the pricing list that I have included and review the information under our Ambulatory programs. Our pricing for these services are based on volume of annual visits for each healthcare organization. If multiple services are provided, the service with the highest risk prevails (i.e., surgery and anesthesia are higher risk then medical and dental). Can you indicate, by facility, the number of annual visits and type of service to be surveyed based on this model? Depending on the types of lab services offered at each site, lab surveys would need to be conducted every two years instead of every three years. Please include additional information for each site as well if possible. ANSWER NINE The detail for each clinic will be included in their specific application for survey. The USCG labs are all CLIA certified and do not need lab accreditation as a separate function. The lab should be included as part of the overall accreditation, not as a separate entity. QUESTION TEN On page 1 of the Performance Work Statement, is it your expectation that "the next accreditation survey is due to begin immediately upon award" to mean that the survey needs to be scheduled or physically surveyed upon award. For example, if the award is given to the XXXXX XXXXXXX, is it your expectation that we will be out the next day in Alameda, California or on July 13, 2004 as indicated in Section B.1? ANSWER TEN The survey schedule is depicted in Section B of the solicitation. QUESTION ELEVEN On page 2 of the Performance Work Statement, who provides the employee identification that you require? Is it provided to the surveyor team when they reach the healthcare organization or do we need to obtain all identifications for our surveyors before they reach each site? ANSWER ELEVEN Any surveyor shall have their own ID from their organization. A clinic visitor ID will be issued upon their arrival to each facility. QUESTION TWELVE We currently work with many of the military branches and they use a calendar basis for their contracts so as to coincide with our fiscal year as well as our pricing year. Is this possible to incorporate with the Coast Guard? If not, we can accommodate the current solicitation time table. ANSWER TWELVE The contract will be from date of award through the following 365 days as stated in the solicitation. QUESTION THIRTEEN Our survey team has flexible hours of operation when they survey each organization. We have conducted surveys before 0800 and finished after 1600 if this best fit the needs of the organization. However, if you would prefer that all sites be completed between 0800 and 1600, we can accommodate this as well. Please advise as to your preference. ANSWER THIRTEEN It is anticipated that the surveys will be conducted during the established clinic hours of operation, which are generally 0800 to 1600. However, if other scheduling works better for the clinic and the contractor, that can be accommodated on a case-by-case basis. QUESTION FOURTEEN The post survey support mentioned in 5.2 is completed by the XXXX XXXXXX. In our current survey process model, the surveyor team would leave a preliminary report with each organization. The final report is issued to the organization from our office in XXXXXXX. The organization would be sent an e-mail to indicate that their final report is ready for viewing on our secured extranet site. Please advise if this would not meet your requirements. ANSWER FOURTEEN The requirements for reporting are stated in the Performance Work Statement. Should you chose to provide an alternative to that schedule, you may submit that with your proposal. QUESTION FIFTEEN Depending on the type of survey required, we send the appropriate number of surveyors needed to complete the survey. Therefore, it is possible that one, two or more surveyors would be sent to a site. Please advise if this will not meet your requirement as listed in your statement of work where you require two health care professionals. ANSWER FIFTEEN It is anticipated that 2 surveyors would be needed per survey. However, there may be reason to adjust that number due to the size of the survey location. This would be handled on a case-by-case basis, prior to the survey and would be incorporated into the contract by formal modification. QUESTION SIXTEEN I want to clarify for purposes of pricing that an admission to the clinic at Training Center Cape May is considered an outpatient 24 hour observation stay and not an inpatient admission. Please advise. ANSWER SIXTEEN The observation unit at Training Center Cape May is observation only, not inpatient care. The unit is used for convalescence since recruits do not have a home to go to when procedures such as extensive dental work are done. To get them out of the training regimen, and allow them a place to rest and recover, they are provided a bed in the observation area. QUESTION SEVENTEEN For Contract HSCG23-04-R-PMB012, Section L.8 on page 37under "Requirements for Proposal Format", it states, "Page limitations and number of copies below:" However, it appears there is no related information "below". Although I have noted that Standard Form 33 states that an original and four copies (5 sets total of the proposal) are to be submitted, there is no reference to "page limitations", which I am assuming concerns the number of pages. Other format instructions appear earlier under the heading "Requirements for Proposal Format" but do not discuss number of pages if such a limitation exists. What additional instruction can you provide regarding number of pages or other page limitations that do not appear as referenced on page 37?. ANSWER SEVENTEEN There is no limitation on the number of pages that can be submitted with the proposals. A total of 5 proposals shall be submitted. QUESTION EIGHTEEN Part III - Section J "List of Attachments", indicates an Attachment 2 of 1 page, titled "Personnel Data Form". I am unable to locate this attachment among the website posted materials. How can I obtain this attachment? ANSWER EIGHTEEN This form will be provided at time of award. END OF AMENDMENT 0002