R -- Legal Review and Assessment

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for HIV/AIDS Prevention and Division of STD Prevention is soliciting quotes in efforts to provide a service to conduct a legal review and assessment of state laws, policies, and administrative rules concerning Partner Counseling and Referral Services (PCRS). This is a combined synopsis/solicitation. The solicitation number is 2006-Q-08549. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; proposals are being requestd and a written solicitation will not be issued. This solicitation is set aside for a small business. The NAICS code is 541110. The award will be a firm fixed price award with a period of performance of June 19, 2006 to October 27, 2006. The services will be performed at the Corporate Square campus, Bldg 8 Corporate Square, N.E., Atlanta, GA 30329. Contractors must be registered in the Central Contractor Registration (CCR). Contractors may register by calling +1 (555) 000-0000 or register via the Internet at www.ccr.gov. Notification of any changes shall be made only through FedBizOpps, http://www.fedbizopps.gov. Quotes may be faxed to +1 (555) 000-0000, ATTN: Ms. Johnson or emailed to contact@example.gov. The date specified for receipt of offers is NLT 9:00 a.m. EST May 31, 2006. Statement of Work I. Assessing the Legal Environment for Partner Counseling and Referral Services (PCRS) A. Project Identification & Purpose. The purpose of this project is to conduct a legal review and assessment of state laws, policies, and administrative rules concerning PCRS, culminating in a comprehensive report that frames the current legal environment for PCRS in the United States. B. Background and Need As part of the CDC's Advancing HIV Prevention Initiative (AHPI), the Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention (DHAP) is emphasizing HIV PCRS as an important strategy for reducing HIV transmission in the United States. The published literature indicates that PCRS is effective and cost-effective for reaching persons at very high risk for HIV infection and is acceptable to individuals seeking HIV testing, HIV-infected persons, and notified partners. Unfortunately, a recently published survey by Matt Golden found that, in 22 jurisdictions with HIV reporting, health departments interviewed only 32% of 20,353 persons with newly reported HIV (Golden MR, Hogben M, Potterat JJ, Handsfield HH. HIV partner notification in the United States: A national survey of program coverage and outcomes. Sex Transm Dis 2004;31:709-12). Health department program data submitted to CDC, also indicates that PCRS is highly underutilized and that PCRS program performance needs substantial improvement. For these reasons, DHAP and the Division of STD Prevention (DSTDP) are embarking on a revision of the HIV PCRS guidance. The specific aims of this project are to (1) revise and update the CDC HIV PCRS guidance and integrate it into CDC's guidelines for STD partner services; (2) recommend strategies for implementing the revised guidelines and improving partner services program performance; and (3) identify critical unanswered questions and key areas for research and evaluation. The revised, integrated document will provide a single, unified set of guidelines to serve as the basis for CDC-funded HIV partner services programs and revised training and capacity-building assistance related to PCRS. DHAP and DSTP recognize that existing laws and regulations concerning partner notification, particularly at the state and local levels, may impact effective implementation of the revised, integrated PCRS guidance. For this reason, they are seeking a review of relevant laws and regulation to provide an overview of legal requirements concerning partner notification (including spousal) at the state and local levels. C. Statement of Work Task 1:Legal Review and Assessment of Laws and Policies Concerning PCRS The contractor shall identify and assess existing legal issues related to PCRS at the state and local levels. The contractor shall design a template table and will then use the template to catalog existing statutory or regulatory legal provisions that authorize or affect PCRS at the state and local levels, either positively or negatively. The outcome of this initial stage will be the completion of a comprehensive table that summarizes the legal status of PCRS on key issues within health department jurisdictions funded by CDC to conduct HIV prevention programs, including PCRS (the 50 states, the district of Columbia, and the six funded directly by CDC: New York City, Philadelphia, Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Houston). Task 2: Authoritative Guidance Based on Initial Review The contractor shall produce and deliver to NCHSTP a comprehensive report that describes the current legal environment for PCRS through detailed analysis of the review and assessment of state and local laws conducted during Task 1. In addition to summarizing the results of the comprehensive table, the report shall provide relevant examples of both common and exceptional legal requirements, analyze how these provisions may affect the implementation of PCRS, and assess legal obstacles to and pathways toward effective utilization of PCRS under CDC's new guidance. D. Period of Performance/Delivery Schedule The period of performance shall be June 19, 2006 through October 27, 2006. Task Item Description Quantity Delivery Date Task 1 1. Comprehensive table cataloguing state and local laws related to PCRS provisions 1 3 - months after award Task 2 2. Comprehensive report summarizing the current legal environment for PCRS 1 copy 4 - months after award Tasks 1&2 3. Initial conference call to review contractor's plan for conducting the project 1 2 weeks after award Tasks 1&2 4. Regular conference calls to discuss progress 6-8 Bi-weekly after initial conference call Instructions to Bidders I. Technical Approach: Please provide discussion of the technical approach for providing the services required for this task order. Please address understanding of requirements, target audience, subject matter and specific considerations/techniques proposed. This section shall not exceed 5 pages. II. Staffing and Management: Please provide a staffing plan that demonstrates the understanding of the labor requirements for this task order; and a management plan that describes their approach for managing the work. Please provide a curriculum vitae/resume for each individual expected to provide 20% or more of the labor under the order. Address education, work experience and any relevant training of the individual. Explain the role each individual is to play in completing the statement of work. III. Similar Experience: Please provide a description of each contract/assignment similar in complexity and scope completed in the past 5 years contained in the statement of work herein. Please provide the name/address and point of contact for each customer. This section shall not exceed 10 pages. Please include experience in surveying, reviewing, and analyzing public health laws relating to HIV/AIDS prevention efforts, specifically laws related to partner notification for HIV or other STDs. IV. Past Performance: Please provide a list of references that can validate the quality of performance on prior similar work. Include references for work listed in item 3 above in addition to any others. Please provide the following for each reference, not to exceed a total of five: Name; Employer; Address; Telephone/Email address; Description of work for which they are provided as a reference and individual's role. V. Budget: Please provide a budget for the proposed work using the attached template. Labor: Include labor rate and number of hours for each individual proposed under the order. Other Direct Costs: List any non-labor costs associated with the work such as travel, supplies, etc. Total Cost: Labor Plus Other Direct Costs. E. Identification and Disposition of Data All data will be retained and become the property of CDC.