MODIFICATION
Q -- Medical Assistance/Emergency Services
- Notice Date
- 10/22/2007
- Notice Type
- Modification
- NAICS
- 524114
— Direct Health and Medical Insurance Carriers
- Contracting Office
- Millennium Challenge Corporation, MCC, Washington DC, 875 Fifteenth Street, N.W., Washington, DC, 20005, UNITED STATES
- ZIP Code
- 20005
- Solicitation Number
- MCC-08-0014-RFQ-79
- Response Due
- 10/29/2007
- Archive Date
- 11/12/2007
- Point of Contact
- Olena Evans, Contracting Specialist, Phone 202-521-3600, Fax 202-521-3947
- E-Mail Address
-
evansoo@mcc.gov
- Description
- The purposes of this Amendment are to: 1. Publish questions and answers relative to this Solicitation; and 2. Extend the deadline for offers to 5:00 p.m., EDT, on October 29, 2007. NO MORE QUESTIONS ARE ALLOWED BETWEEN THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THIS AMENDMENT AND THE DEADLINE FOR OFFERS. Specifically, this Solicitation is amended as follows: 1. The questions and the MCC?s responses are provided below. Question 1: Section entitled "Description". In the third paragraph, you state "A medical emergency is defined as physical, mental, and/or natal." We would like to suggest that you augment this statement with language that will define when an evacuate needs to occur. A suggestion would be to follow this with "a physical, mental, and/or natal condition in which either the person is currently hospitalized in an in-patient capacity, or has a condition which requires in-patient hospitalization." This definition would establish a finite criterion for evacuation and avoid the issue of having a mandated evacuation for a person who just needs limited out-patient treatment (sutures, blood tests, etc.) where an evacuation would not be medically appropriate. Answer 1: The third paragraph will remain unchanged. Question 2: In the following paragraph, you reference the term "eligible family members". Can we have a description of who the MCC considers to be eligible? Is this just the spouse or dependant children of an MCC employee, or does it extend to the employee's siblings, parents, and other relatives that might be visiting them in their host country? Answer 2: An eligible family member refers to the individual's dependent children and spouse. Question 3: Towards the end of that paragraph, it is specified that the "final decision on medical evacuations for MCC employees and eligible family members are to be made in joint consultation between the contractor, the U.S. Embassy medical staff, and if possible the injured party or his/her guardian." There is no language in the current RFP specifying that the final choice destination hospital be made by the patient (or the patient's emergency contact person if the patient is incapacitated). We suggest that the decision making be in the hands of the patient, with the assistance of the U.S. Embassy medical staff, eligible family members, and the patient's current attending physician and their own home primary care physician as it relates to choice of destination hospital. The contractor should also be responsible for providing expert-level medical advisory services from a top-50 U.S. Hospital to assist the patient in making this decision. This will ensure that the patient has the right to determine and be transported to wherever the best medical care for their condition can be obtained. There is also no specific language calling for evacuation back to the United States. Without language such as this, the contractor can elect to transport the patient to the least expensive destination, perhaps not even back to their home country. The notion of "closest appropriate hospital", as defined by a contractor, could be one that just provides "adequate" care which could result in the patient receiving a lower quality of care than they deserve. The nightmare of a sick MCC employee stationed in Mongolia, for example, would only get magnified by their evacuation to "the closest appropriate hospital" in Kazakhstan, as could be currently allowed by the RFP as written. Answer 3: The evacuation does not need to be back to the United States but to the closest appropriate hospital. The U.S. Embassy will determine the "closest appropriate hospital." Question 4: Is there a limit to the number of possible evacuations per employee or family member per year? Similarly, is there a cap limit to how much the contractor would be expected to spend per evacuation? Most standard agreements specify no more than two evacuations per person per year and a cap of $500,000 per evacuation. (The most expensive evacuations do not cost over $250,000, so this amount should be more than adequate.) Answer 4: A single person could, in theory, have multiple evacuations. This is, however, unlikely since anyone living abroad must receive a medical clearance before going back overseas. A person traveling on TDY should not be limited to the number of evacuations. Question 5: In the section identified as a service that is "Highly Desirable", can you specify where the pregnant person and her dependant children need to be evacuated to? Once again, we suggest that language is included that indicates the destination be the patient's choice. Of course, a woman in her third trimester of pregnancy does not necessarily require in-patient hospitalization. We would like to suggest that the evacuation destination be the closest appropriate commercial airport to the employee?s permanent home address. We would also like to suggest that the father-to-be also be evacuated back to their home airport (if it is possible for him based on his workload) a few days prior to the expected due date to be available during the birth of his child. We also would like to ask if the MCC is expecting the contractor to pay the cost of the return transportation for the mother, dependants, and father/employee back to the host country after the six-week post-birth period has elapsed. Answer 5: The pregnant employee or pregnant spouse has the option of going to a MCC designated site or to return to the United States. Preferred would be for the contractor to cover medevac costs to/from point of birth for pregnant employee or spouse and dependent children. Question 6: Under the Deliverables heading, item B. states the contractor will coordinate for a family member to join a traveler who is left alone or hospitalized for more than 7 days. Does this mean the contractor is expected to pay the costs of transporting this family member? Is the contractor responsible for hotel arrangements and costs and per diem expense costs for this family member? Is the contractor responsible for the costs of returning this family member back to their point-of-departure when they are ready to be returned or after the traveler is discharged? Answer 6: The vendor should include what they are prepared to offer. Question 7: Under the Deliverables heading, item C. states the contractor will coordinate for the return home any minor children left unattended due to a medical emergency and provide a qualified escort if necessary. Again, does the term "coordinate" mean the contractor is expected to pay for these transportation costs or simply arrange them and pass the invoice on to MCC or the family? Is the contractor responsible for the costs of returning the minor children back to the host country if the medical issue resolves and the parents wish for their children's return? Can you define "qualified escort"? Should this escort be an actual deployable employee of the contractor with advanced medical and/or military training who can safeguard the minor children until they are reunited with their family? Answer 7: The vendor should include what they are prepared to offer. Question 8: Under the Deliverables heading, item D. states that a traveler's mortal remains should be returned to their permanent residence. We would suggest this statement be amended to state "permanent residence or other place designated by their estate." (This would allow remains to be transported only once in the event that a family would like their deceased buried in a location other than their current permanent residence.) Answer 8: The vendor should include what they are prepared to offer. Question 9: Under the Deliverables heading, item E. states the contractor will facilitate the transfer of medication, vaccines, and blood products as necessary. Again, can you state whether or not the contractor is expected to pay for either the products themselves or their shipping, or just arrange for their purchase and transportation. Answer 9: The requirement is to facilitate the transfer. Question 10: Under the Deliverables heading, item F. refers to several service tasks the contractor is expected to perform, including making reservations for airlines, hotels, and other travel services; assist in replacing passports, tickets, and other important documents; providing immediate translation services; and arranging for the replacement of corrective lenses or medical devices. Once again, is contractor expected to pay for the above items, including tickets, hotel rooms, or new eyeglasses without any reimbursement from the MCC or traveler themselves? Answer 10: The RFP states that these are services that the contractor should provide, with no expectation of the company covering the actual costs of the items. Question 11: Also under item F., it states that the contractor will provide medical referrals for worldwide medical and dental care. Is the selection of physicians and dentists, and the payment of the medical and dental bill, the obligation of the contractor or the patient? Answer 11: The requirement is to provide the services of referring physicians and dentists and assisting with any payment problems. The actual payment is the responsibility of the individual. Question 12: Will the MCC provide a list of employees and eligible family members to the contractor prior to beginning the term of the agreement? Will the list include pertinent information related to emergency contacts, medical history, permanent and temporary residences, primary care physicians, and other medical information? Is there any upper age limit to the population covered? Answer 12: No. Question 13: Is the contractor under any specific obligation to deploy their own personnel if at all possible to accompany the sick or injured traveler during their evacuation from their point of origin all the way back to their destination hospital? Frequently, international medical evacuations may require multiple carriers and transfers of the patient from service to service as they are brought across the globe back to their home hospital of choice. With these transfers of care, it is frequently advantageous and medically appropriate to have a "medical escort" who can accompany the patient from start to finish making sure they are getting the finest level of care. Is this something that the MCC would require of their contractor? Answer 13: No. Question 14: This RFP seems to specify that you are just looking for a contractor who can provide a "hospital-to-hospital" evacuation. Is there any specific requirement for search and rescue capability? What would happen if one of your travelers was in a remote region and became ill or injured? Would you like the contractor to have the ability to provide their own search and rescue personnel to perform an actual field evacuation of the traveler, or would you just leave it to the injured party to try and perform their own self-rescue to get to a hospital for eventual evacuation? If possible, should these search and rescue personnel have any specific background experience, such as military special-forces, and should they be actual direct employees of the contractor, or would you accept whatever local provider a contractor can pull out of a phonebook? Answer 14: Search and rescue are not a requirement under the Statement of Work. However, the contractor should have the ability to provide whatever needs of transport is required - with appropriate medical support - to move the injured party from a remote location to an appropriate medical venue. 2. Last paragraph of Solicitation is hereby replaced with the following: "Offers are to be received by no later than 5:00 p.m., EDT, on October 29, 2007, at Millennium Challenge Corporation, 875 Fifteenth Street, NW, Washington, DC, 20005. Fax or e-mail quotes are also acceptable. Fax number: (202) 521-3947 or e-mail: evansoo@mcc.gov. Point of Contact: Olena O. Evans, Contract Specialist (phone: 202-521-3647)." All other terms and conditions of the original Solicitation MCC-08-0014-RFQ-79 remains in full force and effect. NOTE: THIS NOTICE WAS NOT POSTED TO FEDBIZOPPS ON THE DATE INDICATED IN THE NOTICE ITSELF (22-OCT-2007); HOWEVER, IT DID APPEAR IN THE FEDBIZOPPS FTP FEED ON THIS DATE. PLEASE CONTACT fbo.support@gsa.gov REGARDING THIS ISSUE.
- Web Link
-
Link to FedBizOpps document.
(http://www.fbo.gov/spg/MCC/MCCMCC/MCCMCC01/MCC-08-0014-RFQ-79/listing.html)
- Place of Performance
- Address: 875 Fifteenth Street, NW Washington, D.C.
- Zip Code: 20005
- Country: UNITED STATES
- Zip Code: 20005
- Record
- SN01438922-F 20071024/071022224457 (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps Link to This Notice
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