NOTICE OF OPEN ENROLLMENT (OE)
For Medical and Professional Personnel
Community Preparedness Section
Response and Recovery Unit
OE # HHS0000086
Issued: December 20, 2013
Due: December 31, 2018
PROCUREMENT AND CONTRACTING SERVICES
Dr. David L. Lakey
Commissioner
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. INTRODUCTION AND DEFINITIONS
A. Introduction
B. Definitions
II. COSTS INCURRED AND FUNDING LIMITATIONS
III. FUNDING AND MOA AMOUNT AND TERM
A. Use of Funds
B. Term and Amount of MOA and an Attachment to MOA
IV. ELIGIBLE RESPONDENTS AND REQUIRED ACTIVITIES
A. Eligibility Requirements
B. Required Activities
V. PROGRAM INFORMATION
A. Scope of Work
B. Legal Authority
C. Civil Rights and Anti-Discrimination
D. Method of Payment
VI. PROCUREMENT AND ADMINISTRATIVE REQUIREMENTS
A. OE Point of Contact
B. Submission
C. Evaluation Process
D. Rejection of OE Applications
E. Right to Amend or Withdraw
F. Authority to Bind DSHS
G. Financial and Administrative Requirements
H. Contracting with Subcontractors Prohibited
VII. APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS AND CRITERIA FOR ACCEPTANCE......
VIII. BLANK FORMS AND INSTRUCTIONS
FORM A: Face Page
FORM B: Open Enrollment Application Checklist
FORM C: Contact Person Information Form
FORM D: OE Application and Memorandum of Agreement
FORM E: Proof of Liability Insurance......
IX. APPENDIX
APPENDIX A: DSHS ASSURANCES AND CERTIFICATIONS......
APPENDIX B: GENERAL PROVISIONS
I. INTRODUCTION AND DEFINITIONS
A. Introduction
The Department of State Health Services (DSHS or Department)Regional and Local Health Services(Division) Community Preparedness Section Response and Recovery Unit (Program)announces this Notice of Open Enrollment (OE) and is seekingOEapplications from medical staffing companies to provide trained medical and/or professional personnel to assist in responding to a public health emergency, exercise, disasterevent(hereinafter referred to as an “Event) in the State of Texas. Emergencies may be declared by the President of the United States or the Governor of Texas.
If a respondent for this OE meets the qualifications, then they will executea MedicalStaffing Memorandum of Agreement (MOA). If there is an Event and theyhave been activated by DSHS, an Attachment to the MOA will be executed by DSHS and the Respondent that will provide the scope of work and terms and conditions for that Event.
This MOA may be activated (and an Attachment executed)only after notification by the DSHS State Medical Operations Center (SMOC) Director or their designee that they have selected to respond to an Event.
This OE contains standardized requirements that all Respondents must meet to be considered for providing services in response to an Event under a MOA (and its executed Attachment). Failure to comply with these requirements may result in disqualification of the respondent without further consideration. Each respondent is solely responsible for the preparation and submission of anOEapplication in accordance with instructions contained in the OE.
READ ALL MATERIALS BEFORE COMPLETING THIS OE.
B. Definitions
1.Appendix – Additional information and/or forms that are available in the back of thisOE.
2.Attachment to MOA – is part of the MOA and is executed between DSHS and the Contractor in response to being activated for an Event.
3.Procurement and Contracting Services –Central contracting unit within DSHS that is responsible for statewide client services procurements and their certifications. PCSoversees, coordinates, and assists the Division with client services procurement needs, issues competitive procurements, finalizes development, and executes contracts. PCS maintains the official contract file from procurement to contract closeout.
4.Contractor – A successful respondent that executes an MOA with DSHS under this OE. Also referred to herein as “vendor.”
5.MOA – A written document referring to promises or agreements for which the law establishes enforceable duties and remedies between a minimum of two parties.
6.Debarment – An exclusion from contracting or subcontracting with state agencies on the basis of cause set forth in Title 34, Texas Administrative Code, §20.105 et seq.
7.Deliverables – Goods or services contracted for delivery or performance.
8.Respondent/Applicant – A person or entity that submits an application for this OE.
9.Solicitation/Procurement – The process of notifying prospective contractors of an opportunity to provide goods or services to the state of State. This solicitation is an OE.
10.Vendor Identification Number – Fourteen-digit number needed for any entity, whether vendor/contractor to contract with the State of Texas and is set up with the State of Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts (See
II. COSTS INCURRED AND FUNDING LIMITATIONS
- Issuance of this OE in no way constitutes a commitment by DSHS or the State of Texas to execute an attachment to an MOA in response to an event or to pay any costs incurred by any Respondent who may submit an OEapplication.
- Any attachment to an MOA that is activated in response to an Event will be subject to the availability ofstate and/or federal funds. DSHS reserves the right to alter, amend or withdraw this OE if funds become unavailable through lack of appropriations, budget cuts, transfer of funds between programs or agencies, amendment of the appropriations act, health and human services agency consolidations, or any other disruption of current appropriations. If an MOA or attachment to one has been fully executed and these circumstances arise, then DSHS will terminate it.
III. FUNDING AND MOA AMOUNT AND TERM
A. Use of Funds
- Funds are awarded for the purpose specifically defined in this OE and must not be used for any other purpose. Within the total amount of available funding, individual MOAs will be awarded based on the:
- Number of OE applications received; and
- Number of Respondents who meet the requirements of Section IV (Eligible Respondents and Required Activities).
- Applications will be reviewed in the order in which they are received, and contracts will be awarded. MOAs will be awarded without regard to whether or not respondents have previously had an MOA with DSHS under this program.
B. Term and Amount of MOA and an Attachment to MOA
It is expected that the initial term of the MOA will begin upon the MOAbeing fully executed and unless otherwise terminated as provided for in the MOA, it will end on December 31, 2018. The total amount of this MOA is zero dollars.
If DSHS activates an attachment to this MOA due to an event, then its term and funding will be determined by DSHS based on the rates as specified in Exhibit A.
IV. ELIGIBLE RESPONDENTS AND REQUIRED ACTIVITIES
A. Eligibility Requirements
Eligible Respondents are medical staffing companies doing business in the State of Texas.
Respondent is not considered eligible to apply unless the respondent meets the eligibility requirements to the stated criteria listed below at the time the OE application is submitted. Respondent must continue to meet these conditions throughout the selection and funding process. DSHS expressly reserves the right to review and analyze the documentation submitted and to request additional documentation todetermine the respondent’s eligibility to execute an MOA with DSHS.
An eligible Respondent:
- Is legally authorized to do business in the State of Texas and determined to be "Active" by the Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Applicants can check their status at
- Can conduct the activities and provide the services described in the OE;
- Have a Texas address. A post office box may be used when the OEapplication is submitted, but the respondent must conduct business at a physical location in Texas prior to the date that the MOA is awarded;
- Must be in good standing with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service;
- Must be able to apply for funds under this OEbecause is not currently debarred, suspended or otherwise excluded or ineligible for participation in Federal or State assistance programs;
- In compliance with Comptroller of Public Accounts and Texas Procurement and Support Services rules, a name search will beconducted using the websites listed in this sectionprior tothedevelopment of a contract.
A respondent is not considered eligible to contract with DSHS if a name match is found on any of the following lists:
- The Excluded Parties List System (EPLS) – Federal at
- The Office of Inspector General (OIG) List of Excluded Individuals/Entities Search– State – and
Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts (CPA) Debarment List located at debarred/
- Must have a current license, certification, registration or other evidence of authority to practice the individual’s profession issued by a state;
- Must agree to keep and provide to DSHS detailed records of expenditures and
time spent while performing duties as assigned by DSHS. Must
assure that these records and time logs are complete, accurate and have
adequate supporting documentation; and
- Must be prepared to be self-sufficient for the length of deployment.
B. Required Activities
Respondent must:
- Respond upon written notification of deployment activation by the designated DSHS Incident Commander or his/her designees. Activationmay occur at any time, day or night, including weekends and or holidays, and only after an official written and signed notification of deployment letter has been sent via fax or e-mail to the primary contact.
- Upon acceptance of deployment activation, the Contractor’s staffwill be en route to the designated mission site within twelve hours from the time they receive the official deployment notification from DSHS.
- If there is an Event and they have been activated by DSHS, an Attachment to the MOA will be prepared by DSHS and signed by theRespondent and DSHS. The Attachment will provide the scope of work and terms and conditions for that Event.
- For reimbursement purposes, the mission will start when the deployed staff leaves their home and will conclude at the time the deployed staff returns to their home after DSHS issues a demobilization order or the terms of the deployment authorization have been met. The designated mission locations will vary depending on the Event. DSHS may also activate for training and exercise.
V. PROGRAM INFORMATION
A. Scope of Work
The purpose of this OE is to establish a mechanism wherebytrained medical and/or professional personnel may be deployed throughout the State of Texas to provide medical and public health services in a pending or actual Event, which is also referred to as a “state mission.”
An MOA that is the result of this OE may be activated by:
- Notification of the State Medical Operations Center (SMOC) Director or his/her designee to any Contractor; and/or
- Notification of the CMU Director to address a public health emergency
Activationmay occur at any time - day or night including weekends and/or holidays. This will occur only after an official written and signed notification of deployment letter has been sent via fax or email to the Contractor with deployment packet of documents/forms to be utilized during the mission.
If the Contractor self-deploys without proper notification from DSHS, they will not be eligible for reimbursement through this MOA. Upon acceptance of deployment activation, the contractor must have staff en route to the designated mission within 12 hours from the time they receive the notification of deployment letter. For reimbursement purposes, the mission will start when the Contractor’s staff leave their home and will conclude at the time the Contractor’s staff is officially demobilized from duty by DSHS.
DSHS intends to enter into MOAswith numerous Contractors in order to have available a sufficient number of trained medical professionalsand/or professional staff to respond toEvents.
B. Legal Authority
DSHS is authorized to enter into MOAs and attachments to the MOA through Texas Health and Safety Code Chapter 1001.
C. Civil Rights and Anti-Discrimination
Contractors are required to conduct activities under this OE and/or any resulting MOA or Contract in accordance with federal and state laws prohibiting discrimination. Guidance for adhering to non-discrimination requirements can be found on the Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) Civil Rights Office website at:
Upon request, a contractor must provide the HHSC Civil Rights Office with copies of all the contractor’s civil rights policies and procedures. Contractors must notify HHSC’s Civil Rights Office of any civil rights complaints received relating to performance under the contract no more than 10 calendar days after receipt of the complaint. Notice must be directed to:
HHSC Civil Rights Office
701 W. 51st Street, Mail Code W206
Austin, TX 78751
Phone Toll Free (888) 388-6332
Phone: (512) 438-4313
TTY Toll Free (877) 432-7232
Fax: (512) 438-5885
A contractor must ensure that its policies do not have the effect of excluding or limiting the participation of persons in the contractor’s programs, benefits or activities on the basis of national origin, and must take reasonable steps to provide services and information, both orally and in writing, in appropriate languages other than English, in order to ensure that persons with limited English proficiency are effectively informed and can have meaningful access to programs, benefits and activities.
Contractors must comply with Executive Order 13279, and its implementing regulations at 45 CFR Part 87 or 7 CFR Part 16, which provide that any organization that participates in programs funded by direct financial assistance from the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture or U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services must not, in providing services, discriminate against a program beneficiary or prospective program beneficiary on the basis of religion or religious belief.
D. Method of Payment
1.If this MOA is activated in response to an Event and an attachment to it is entered into between DSHS and the Contractor, then the Contractor will invoice DSHS according to the agreed upon rates in Exhibit A.
2.Contractor will timely submit paperwork, documentation, receipts and an invoice to DSHS after Contractor has been demobilized.
3.DSHS will provide the reimbursement form B-13 and instructions as part of the deployment packet. This form is to be used for submitting the required information for reimbursement to DSHS.
4.Only the number and type of medical professionals which are authorized in the deployment letter from DSHS will be reimbursed.
VI. PROCUREMENT AND ADMINISTRATIVE REQUIREMENTS
A. OE Point of Contact
For purposes of submitting questions concerning this OE, the only contact is Lauren Campbellunless otherwise delegated by the OE Point of Contact. All communications concerning this OE, must be submitted by email (preferred), mail, hand-delivery, or fax to:
Mailing Address for Regular Mail:
Deserie Burrell, CTCM
Ref: OE#HHS0000086
Contract Management Unit MC 1990
Department of State Health Services
P.O. Box 149347
Austin, Texas 78714-9347
Physical Address for Overnight Mail or hand-delivery:
Deserie Burrell, CTCM
Ref: OE#HHS0000086
Contract Management Unit MC 1990
Department of State Health Services
1100 W. 49th Street, Room T-502
Austin, Texas 78756
Phone and Fax Numbers:
512/776-3967 phone
512/776-7391 fax
DSHS Contact Email:
Other employees and representatives of DSHS are not permitted to answer questions or otherwise discuss the contents of the OE with any respondents or potential respondents or their representatives. Failure to observe this restriction may result in disqualification of this or other subsequent OE applications. This restriction does not preclude discussions between affected parties for the purpose of conducting business unrelated to this OE.
Questions will not be answered verbally. Questions must be submitted by email (preferred), mail, hand-delivery or fax to the addresses or numbers above.
Questions and answers will be posted to the HHS Opportunities Page as appropriate. DSHS reserves the right to amend answers prior to the open enrollment closing date.
B. Submission
The original OE application and twoadditional copies must be submitted to the OEPoint of Contact (See Section IV (A) (2)). DSHS will notaccept OE applications by email or fax.
If anOE application is sent by mail or hand-delivered to the DSHS address above, the Respondent should request a receipt at the time of delivery to verifythe OE application was received. Hand-delivered OE applications must be delivered to the room number identified in (See Section IV (A) (2)).
C. Evaluation Process
OE applications will be evaluated according to the criteria below. All OE applications remain with DSHS and will not be returned to the respondent.OE applications are evaluated for eligibility and completeness. The eligibility criteria requirements are:
1.OE application received on or before the OE application due date and time;
2.The Face Page (Form A) of the original OE application and the MOAbears an original signature of the authorized official of the respondent; and
3.The respondent must meet the eligibility criteria and required activities in Section
IV.
In conducting the evaluation process, DSHS at its sole discretion may give respondents an opportunity to submit missing information or correct identified areas of noncompliance within a specified period of time. This evaluation is strictly ‘pass’ or ‘fail’ as this is not a competitive process and OE applications are not scored.
The final funding amount and the provisions of the attachment to the MOA will be determined at the sole discretion of DSHS staff.
D. Rejection of OEApplications
1.DSHS reserves the right to reject any or all OEapplications.
2.Any attempt by an employee, officeror agent of the respondent to influence the outcome of DSHS’s review through contact with any Commissioner or staff member of DSHS or other Texas Health and Human Services agency will result in rejection of the OE application.
3.Any material misrepresentation in anOE application submitted to DSHS will result in rejection of the OE application.
4.OE applications may be rejected for failure to meet respondent eligibility criteria or inability to perform required activities.
E. Right to Amend or Withdraw
DSHS reserves the rights to alter, amend or modify any provisions of this OE or to withdraw this OE if it is in the best interest of DSHS and the State of Texas. The decision of DSHS isadministratively final. If the MOA or attachment has already been executed, Amendment or notice of withdrawal of the OE will be posted to the HHS Opportunities Page.
F. Authority to Bind DSHS
For the purposes of this OE, DSHS Commissioner or Assistant Commissioner of the appropriate division or their designee are the only individuals who have signature authority to legally commit DSHS to the expenditure of public funds under the contract.
G. Financial and Administrative Requirements
1.All contractors under this OE must comply with the DSHS General Provisionsposted on the HHS Opportunities Page with this OE (see
2.When the Respondent signs the Face Page (Form A), they are agreeing to comply with the DSHS General Provisions andAssurances and Certifications.
3.Additional requirements on basic accounting and financial management systems are found in DSHS Contractor Financial Procedures Manual. Copies of the procedures manual are available online at OMB Circularsmay be found at: