The following is a Sources Sought Notice in accordance with the requirements of Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 19.202-2. This Sources Sought notice represents an information gathering stage of the Market Research process. The Government is attempting to identify prospective capable small businesses; small disadvantaged businesses; HubZone contractor/vendors who may be interested in competing to provide: Long Term Care Psychiatric Services for veterans as referred by Veterans Affairs Medical Centers (VAMC’s). These services at this time are needed in various locations within the states of New Mexico, Texas, Arizona and Colorado. The contracting office, located at the Albuquerque, New Mexico VAMC, will use the information gathered from this Notice to determine the availability for these commercial-type services in the locations in which the services are needed; and also for the purpose of developing a source list. Statement/Scope of Work: In providing these services, contractor shall be in compliance with performance in accordance with the Statement of Work. Contractor performance shall be monitored in accordance with a Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan. In accordance with any resulting contract, the prospective contractor(s) shall be providing the following services: The contractor shall provide one of the following levels of care: Continuation of Care (COC): This care is for patients who require further continuation of care past the acute phase. This could last up to 30 days. This continuum of care would be for patients needing longer lengths of stay than defined in acute care criteria and/or other conditions where it is not possible for them to take care of their needs to where a traditional program is not an option. Continuation of Care Rehabilitation (COC R): This level of care occurs when the patient no longer meets COC criteria per InterQual standards, but needs a longer length of stay. This includes patients needing long-term care that are unable to be placed in VA or community nursing homes and patients who require a longer stabilization due to disposition issues. This could last longer than 30 days. The following are the minimum treatment, training, assessment and testing capabilities that the contractor must possess in order to meet the minimum requirements of the contract: 1. Pharmacotherapy 2. Crisis Stabilization 3. Psychotherapy or psychosocial support services 4. Discharge planning 5. Interventions for concurrent substance abuse disorders ii. The following modalities, although not required of the contract, would be viewed upon favorably if present at contracted facilities: 1. Group therapy 2. Individual therapy 3. Family therapy 4. Skill building 5. Neurological assessment 6. Availability of Clozapine 7. Availability of Buprenorphine 8. Detoxification 9. Dual diagnosis track 10. Patient driven goal setting and family involvement 11. Formal partnership with community agencies to foster community re-integration 12. At least one complementary modality, such as horticulture therapy, creative arts therapy (art, music, etc), and/or mind-body modalities (hypnosis, yoga, tai chi). b. The contracted care facility will be responsible for all minor illnesses of patients, within the scope of its capability (e.g. cold, flu, headaches, etc.). Hospitalization of patients or medical care required outside the scope of care of the contractor shall be coordinated by the contracting VA and care shall be provided at the closest VA/private medical facility as determined by the contracting VA. All associated transportation costs will be borne by the contractor. c. Medications for patients under the terms of the contract shall be provided by the contractor and shall be limited to the VA formulary, unless otherwise approved by the VA healthcare System. Generic medications shall be utilized unless clinically inappropriate. The cost of medication is to be included within the DRG rate charged. d. All examination, treatment, care, and associated administrative contact shall be fully documented for record-keeping purposes. Contractor will adhere to all state and federal laws and regulations, VA accreditation requirements (e.g. The Joint Commission), and VA policies pertaining to formulation and maintenance of medical records, documentation within the medical record, release of information, and retention and retirement of medical records. A medical record must be maintained for each patient that meets all VA designated accreditation requirements. Each form and healthcare record shall contain at a minimum the patient’s name, social security number, date of birth, and facility name. e. Admitting history and physical examination (including diagnosis) by the contractor physician will be accomplished within 24 hours of admission. A plan of care will be developed to include a projected discharge date and the plan for disposition. In preparation for discharge, contracted facilities will utilize suicide prevention modalities in accordance with the latest VHA guidelines on the subject (e.g. – completion of a Safety Plan per VHA Safety Plan Quick Guide for Clinicians – Appendix A). A discharge summary (to include discharge medications list) will be completed within 24 hours of discharge and faxed to the Utilization Review (UR) nurse and /or VA Case Manager at the appropriate VA healthcare facility within 48 hours of completion to become part of the patient's VA record. At least a 7-day supply of medications will be provided at discharge to ensure sufficient supply until the patient's follow up outpatient appointment. f. VA case managers and/or a UR nurse from each VA Healthcare facility will follow patients approved for admission to the contractor. Each week a continued plan of care for the patient will be forwarded to the UR nurse and/or case manager at the appropriate VA healthcare facility. The plan of care will include a projected discharge date and plan for disposition at discharge. This plan of care will be reviewed by the VA UR nurse and/or case manager and forwarded to the VA interdisciplinary team for review for approval of continued care. Prior to discharge from the hospital an outpatient appointment will be made for the patient to see a VA mental health provider within 7 days. The contractor will contact the case manager and/or UR nurse at the applicable VA healthcare facility to coordinate this appointment. g. The applicable VA healthcare facility will provide the contractor 24 hours notice of intent to transfer a patient to another healthcare setting. h. Contractor personnel treating VA patients shall be fully trained in their respective disciplines, i.e. psychiatrists, social workers, recreation therapists, registered nurses, licensed vocational nurses, etc. The contractor signature block on the standard form 1449, Solicitation/Contract/Offer for Commercial Items, is a certification that any clinical personnel providing services under this contract: i. Possess at least one full, active, current, and unrestricted license in any State, Territory, Commonwealth of the United States, or in the District of Columbia; ii. Psychiatrists shall have completed a recognized residency program in psychiatry and be board-certified or board eligible; iii. Have no physical limitations or other conditions that may adversely affect his or her ability to perform as required by this contract; iv. Has not had a loss, reduction, restriction, or revocation of his or her clinical privileges at any institution for any reason; v. Has not had a valid ruling of malpractice due to clinical incompetence. vi. Is a member in good standing of, or has not had a loss of membership from, the medical staff at any institution for reasons of disciplinary action or clinical incompetence. vii. Has not been convicted of felony criminal charges and does not currently have pending felony criminal charges against him or her and; viii. Undertakes the responsibility while rendering services under this contract, to comply with all applicable State, Federal and local laws, rules and regulations and the standards of accreditation as required by the VA. II. Admission and Discharge: The referring VA Health Care facility will be responsible for transportation of the patient to and from the contractor’s facility for VA healthcare services. At least 24 hours prior to discharge, the contractor will contact the referring VA Health Care facility to coordinate a transportation plan. The contracted care facility is responsible for transportation of patients with appropriate staff, when indicated, to the disembarkation point upon discharge of the patient. III. Quality Control: The VA healthcare facility shall maintain a quality control program. Representatives of the VA Healthcare System may examine the contractor’s facilities, methodology, and quality of care at any time during the life of this contract. The contractor shall provide telephone numbers and contact personnel to be contacted for inquiries/problems. Such personnel shall be available during normal working hours. IV. Safety: The contractor shall adhere to VA policy and procedures when the patient departs Against Medical Advice (AMA) or elopes (leaves the hospital without notifying any staff). Suicide behaviors occurring while in the contractor’s care or within 30 days after the care delivered shall be reported to the UR nurse/case manager at the appropriate VA Healthcare facility. Should the contractor be made aware of a suicide completion of a Veteran provided care under this contract at any time it shall be reported to the appropriate VA Healthcare facility UR nurse/case manager. Facilities/structures will meet the safety standards required by the VA. Five year (base plus 4 (four) one-year option period) multiple award contracts are contemplated. Reimbursement for services will be monthly in arrears. The reimbursement methodology will be an all-inclusive Diagnosis-related group (DRG) system using the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) methodology. If a re-admission occurs within 72 hours of discharge, the subsequent hospitalization will be included in the original DRG reimbursement. The following DRG's are relevant to this contract: i. DRG 881 Depressive Neurosis ii. DRG 882 Neurosis Except Depressive iii. DRG 883 Disorders of Personality and Impulse Control iv. DRG 884 Organic Disturbances and Mental Retardation v. DRG 885 Psychosis vi. DRG 886 Behavioral and Developmental Disorders vii. DRG 887 Other Mental Disorder Diagnoses -------------------------- Interested parties responding to this Sources Sought Notice shall submit all information and responses to the following point of contact: Bryan S. Rogers, Contract Specialist, Email:
[email protected]. Responses shall be received no later than: June 7, 2011. With responses and information, provide ALL of the following: Your company name; address; point of contact/phone number; tax ID; and Dun and Bradstreet number (DUNS#). Is your business a large or small business? Is your business SDVOSB? Is your business VOSB? Other: _______________ Is your business foreign-owned? Submissions are to be legible. A brief summary is all that is needed versus a detailed proposal. If more information is needed you will be contacted. The Government will not pay for any information that is submitted in response to this Sources Sought Notice; the submission of information is strictly voluntary. The Government will treat all responses in a confidential manner, and will not release this information to the public. This notice is not to be construed as an acquisition Request for Information (RFI) nor is any commitment on the part of the Government to award a contract implied. The New Mexico VAMC is only trying to identify any firms not listed on any mandatory source list. This is NOT an Invitation for Bid (IFB) nor is it a Request for Proposal (RFP). A solicitation announcement will possibly be posted on the Federal Business Opportunities website: https://www.fbo.gov in the future. All contractors MUST be registered in CCR and ORCA to do business with the federal government and annually ensure the information is current at the Business Partner Network: http://www.bpn.gov. VETERAN OWNED BUSINESSES - be sure to register and get validated at http://www.vetbiz.gov. CONTRACTORS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REGISTER AT THE eCMS Vendor Portal to do business with VA: https://www.vendorportal.ecms.va.gov/eVP. Please provide proof of registration with the above websites.