Durable Medical Equipment (DME) Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC)

DME MAC Re-competes: Jurisdictions A, B, and D Questions for Industry Background In 2003, President Bush signed into law the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act (MMA), Public Law 108-173. This Act amended Title XVIII of the Social Security Act by establishing the Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC) contracting authority (section 911 of the MMA). The MMA required that all Medicare claims processing and related functions performed by the previous fiscal intermediaries and carriers under the Medicare fee-for-service program be competed and awarded to the new MACs through use of federal procurement procedures. In 2006, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) awarded three Durable Medical Equipment (DME) MAC contracts to administer Medicare claims for DME benefits in jurisdictions A, B, and D (see CMS website at http://www.cms.hhs.gov/MedicareContractingReform/ for more detail regarding the DME MAC jurisdictions). Under the MMA, the Secretary of Health and Human Services must re-compete MAC contracts at least every five (5) years. Therefore, CMS intends to issue a Request for Proposal (RFP) for the contracts for DME MAC jurisdictions A, B, and D by the end of calendar year 2009. Model Technical Proposal Instructions The CMS is considering modifications to its Technical Proposal instructions for the DME MAC RFP. Rather than requiring offerors to submit full written, Technical Proposals or make traditional in-person oral presentations, CMS is considering requiring offerors to submit the majority of their Technical Proposals in a video/multimedia presentation (NOTE: The CMS may also use this approach in future MAC procurements, including those for Medicare Part A and B claims processing services). The proposed instructions for this video/multimedia presentation are listed below. - Videos/multimedia presentations shall be submitted on a single 8.54 GB (single-sided double-layer) +R DVD. - The DVD shall contain the video/multimedia presentation of the offeror's Technical Proposal for those criteria identified in section L (For the purposes of this RFI, refer to the sample criteria on page 2). - The video/multimedia presentation submitted by offerors shall be fully compliant with the standards found in section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, as amended in 1998. Specifically: - 1194.24 Video and multimedia products. (c) All training and informational video and multimedia productions which support the agency's mission, regardless of format, that contain speech or other audio information necessary for the comprehension of the content, shall be open or closed captioned. (d) All training and informational video and multimedia productions which support the agency's mission, regardless of format, that contain visual information necessary for the comprehension of the content, shall be audio described. (e) Display or presentation of alternate text presentation or audio descriptions shall be user-selectable unless permanent. - The video/multimedia presentation of the Technical Proposal shall not exceed 15 minutes per sub-chapter. - The video/multimedia presentation shall be organized into chapters and sub-chapters and in the same format and order as the technical evaluation criteria. These chapters and sub-chapters must be accessible via a main DVD menu. An example (from past MAC procurements) of evaluation criteria that would be presented on the DVD and proposed organization could be: Chapter 1. Technical Understanding Sub-Chapter 1. Program Management Sub-Chapter 2. Claims Processing Sub-Chapter 3. Provider Customer Service Program Sub-Chapter 4. Appeals Sub-Chapter 5. Medical Review Chapter 2. Implementation Sub-Chapter 1. Implementation Approach Sub-Chapter 2. Implementation Risk Management Plan - At the end of each sub-chapter, the offeror shall restate all technical innovations proposed for that section of the technical proposal. - The offeror shall submit the following supplemental files on the DVD: ? Slide presentations in MS PowerPoint 2003 format (e.g., charts, graphs, and flowcharts). ? Transcripts of spoken dialogue. No other supplemental files shall be included on the DVD. Any information submitted in supplemental files that was not discussed during the presentation may not be considered in evaluating an offeor's Technical Proposal. - Only Key Personnel shall present the offeror's Technical Proposal in the DVD presentation. Key Personnel shall present on those criteria that represent their area of oversight and/or expertise. For example, the Claims Processing Manager would be required to present on a claims processing factor/sub-factor. In addition to this video/multi-media presentation, CMS intends to continue to request certain elements of the Technical Proposal in writing using Microsoft Word 2003 format. Examples (from past MAC procurements) of elements that would be requested in writing could include: - Past Performance - Staffing Plan, - Key Personnel, - Implementation Personnel, and - Corporate Experience. Questions for Industry Based upon past procurement experience and/or industry best practices, please provide your comments on these model RFP instructions for CMS consideration, including comments on topics such as: 1. How much time would you need to prepare your Technical Proposal in accordance with the instructions identified above? 2. Is the time allotted (15 minutes per sub-chapter) a reasonable amount of time for a presentation? Would you prefer an overall limit to the presentation (e.g., two hours)? 3. What are your overall questions/concerns with CMS proposed approach to use a video/multimedia presentation for offerors Technical Proposals? Would you prefer the use of traditional in-person oral presentations? 4. In addition to the model instructions provided above, are there additional instructions and/or parameters that CMS needs to address to ensure that offerors understand what they need to provide in their submission and to ensure that CMS gets the information it needs to make informed judgments regarding offerors proposed technical approaches? 5. Is there another media source (other than DVD) that CMS should consider for the video/multimedia presentation? 6. Do you recommend a different format/structure for the video/multimedia presentation (other than what is described in the model Technical Proposal instructions)? Are there additional elements of a technical proposal that CMS has historically requested in a written proposal that you feel could be presented in the video/multi-media presentation? 7. What is an appropriate page limits for slides used in your presentation? Please provide your response to this Request for Information (RFI) at the email address (MAC_PROCUREMENT@cms.hhs.gov) no later than close of business Tuesday, March 24, 2009. Responses should be submitted as an email attachment in Microsoft Word 2003 format. For purposes of this RFI, the term - vendor refers to those members of industry providing responses to this RFI. The vendor should identify any proprietary information in their RFI responses. Proprietary materials will neither be distributed to nor discussed with any other vendor. CMS will use the information submitted in response to this RFI at its discretion and will not provide comments to any vendor's submission. However, responses to the RFI submitted may be reflected in the final solicitation. CMS reserves the right to contact any vendor that responds to this RFI for the sole purpose of enhancing CMS understanding of your RFI submission. This notice is for informational purposes only and does not constitute a solicitation or Request for Proposal. This RFI is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government. The Government will not pay for any information provided as a result of this RFI and will not recognize or reimburse any cost associated with any RFI submissions.