Arlington County Government Sealed Solicitation
Title: 22-DHS-RFPLW-337: Assisted Living Facility and Short-Term Residential Services for Individuals with Serious Mental Illness and/or Co-Occurring Disorders
Deadline: 11/15/2021 12:00 PM (UTC-05:00) Eastern Time (US & Canada)
Status: Awarded
Solicitation Number: 22-DHS-RFPLW-337
Description:
The intent of this solicitation is to obtain the services of a qualified contractor for each of the following residential programs serving clients with serious mental illness and/or with co-occurring substance use disorders who are served by the Arlington County Behavioral Healthcare Division (BHD). Offeror(s) may submit proposals for either or both of the following two services, both of which require the Offeror to provide housing.
1. Long-term Residential Services, Assisted Living Facility (ALF), (indefinite stay) - serves a minimum of 15 clients, age 18 or older with serious mental illness.
2. Short-term Transitional Housing Services (max stay 90 days) – serves a minimum of 10 adults with serious mental illness who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless, are engaged with BHD and receive services to meet their ongoing housing and financial needs. This program requires limited residential services.
Pre-Bid Meeting Date: 10/11/2021 8:00 AM
Pre-Bid Meeting Details: Please sign up if you plan to attend the pre-bid meeting.
Documents:
| Documents as of 10/4/2021 |
|---|
| 22-DHS-RFPLW-337 Final..pdf |
| Attachment C Cost Proposal Form .xlsx |
Addition 1
Posted: 10/11/2021
Type of Addition: Addendum 1
Overview: Please see Addendum 1 for information relating to the Pre-Proposal Conference
Deadline: 11/4/2021 12:00 PM
Pre-Bid Meeting Date: 10/11/2021 8:00 AM
Solicitation #: 22-DHS-RFPLW-337
Documents:
Addition 2
Posted: 10/21/2021
Type of Addition: Addendum 2
Overview: Please see Addendum 2 for questions received and answered by the County
Deadline: 11/15/2021 12:00 PM
Solicitation #: 22-DHS-RFPLW-337
Documents:
Addition 3
Posted: 11/12/2021
Type of Addition: Addendum 3
Overview: Please see Addendum 3 for the revised method of award.
Deadline: 11/15/2021 12:00 PM
Documents:
Addition 4
Posted: 11/15/2021
Type of Addition: In Review
Addition 5
Posted: 3/18/2022
Type of Addition: Intent to Award Information
Documents:
Addition 7
Posted: 1/12/2023
Type of Addition: Notice of Lifting of Stay
Documents:
Question 1
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: DBHDS does not license, have regulations or other oversight of ALFs, and Short-Term Transitional homes are unlicensed. Can the County clarify why there is a requirement on page 16, Item #9 that the Contractor implement DBHDS recommendations identified as part of DBHDS audits and monitoring as part of the Performance Expectations?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 2
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Can the County clarify if the proposed housing is required to be located within Arlington County?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 3
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Does the County prefer one 15-bed Assisted Living Facility or multiple locations?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 4
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: The cost proposal form includes One-Time Start Up Costs. Start up funding has historically excluded specific categories identified by the purchasing agent. Can the County clarify there are no categories that are ineligible to be included as part of start up funding? How is startup funding included in the scoring and evaluation of the cost proposal for the purposes of this RFP?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 5
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Will the Short-term Transitional Housing be a single award or awarded to multiple contractors?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 6
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Short-Term Transitional Housing Services specifies a minimum of 10 clients per day. Has the County identified a maximum number of clients per day? Does the County desire expanded capacity beyond a minimum of 10 clients per day?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 7
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Page 13 of the RFP states “All staff performing clinical functions must be Qualified Mental Health Professionals (QMHPs). The ALF staffing standards do not include a definition of clinical functions. Can the county please define “clinical functions” as related to staffing for the ALFs?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 8
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Page 13 of the RFP states the offeror will “Collaborate with the County to determine the most appropriate staffing adjustments necessary to accommodate acute crisis situations as necessary.” How would the contract allow for staffing adjustments in an acute crisis situation?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 9
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Page 17 of the RFP states “each home must have a sufficient kitchen facility, living space and bathrooms to accommodate a minimum of 10 residents per day” for Short-Term Transitional Housing. Does the County prefer one 10-bed facility or multiple locations?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 10
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Can the County clarify the reason the contractor is required to supply a furniture inventory when the contractor is responsible for purchasing, replacing and will own the furniture at the end of the contract?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 11
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: One of the mandatory requirements states the offeror must own or be able to lease housing”. How is the ability to lease evaluated in the RFP process, and how will the County evaluate and score compliance with requirements stated in the Scope of Services (e.g., location, access to transportation, suitability of the physical environment for residents, cost)?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 12
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Will the County agree to be the leaseholder for the facility where services will be provided? Alternatively, will the County agree to facilitate a lease agreement between the Contractor and property owner?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 13
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Page 20 of the RFP states the offeror will “Ensure that staff are trained and/or certified in the following areas prior to their initial assignments”. Can the County define what is meant by “initial assignments”? ALF standards for training specify “training shall commence no later than 60 days after employment”. Can the County confirm the RFP and subsequent contract requires staff meet all training requirements identified in the RFP prior to working in the ALF?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 14
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Can the County provide information regarding how offerors will be evaluated in the scoring for Performance Outcome Statistics? For example, average length of stay is determined by the County’s decisions with respect to admissions and discharges; DLA-20 change scores are individual driven rather than contractor driven. For indefinite stay homes, how would an offeror identify a percentage of participants who successfully completed the program?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 15
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Page 16 of the RFP, Item 11 states “Ensure that the medication error rates remain below 2%. Medication errors include: wrong person, wrong dosage, wrong medicine, wrong time, wrong route, medication refusal, medication administered but not recorded, medication reported missing, missed medications, pharmacy non-delivery, missed medications due to staff error and other medication errors. Medication management policies and procedures must comply with state regulatory standards.” §6VAC35-101-1060 of the Code of Virginia allows for documentation of medication refusals, including action taken by staff and §63.2-1808 of the Code of Virginia and referenced in the Assisted Living Facility standards states in part a resident “…is afforded the opportunity to participate in the planning of his program of care and medical treatment at the facility and the right to refuse treatment.” Does the County consider an individual exercising the right of refusal to be a medication error for the purposes of this RFP and subsequent contract?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 16
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: How does the County value proximity to a metro stop, a bus stop or alternative transportation options, as noted on page 12, general requirement 3(c)? In other words, are they all valued equally, or does one transportation method have greater value than another?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 17
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: With respect to the evaluation of qualifications of the proposed staff, as set forth on page 25, may offerors provide the qualifications of staff who are not employed by the offeror, but who are employed by other entities or persons?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 18
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: With respect to the evaluation of facility capabilities and capacity, as set forth on page 25, must offerors provide information about an existing facility under the ownership or control of the offeror, or may offerors provide information about a facility that an offeror might lease only after contract award?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 19
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: If offerors may provide information on the capabilities and capacity of a facility that does not presently exist, then why does the Technical Expertise section on page 27 not require offerors to provide any such information on the actual facility that offerors intend to use?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 20
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: How will the County evaluate the capabilities and capacity of a facility that does not yet exist under the Technical Expertise factor on page 25?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 21
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: How will the County require offerors to demonstrate in the proposal submission that the mandatory requirement on page 27 to “own or be able to lease housing" is met?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 22
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: During the pre-proposal conference, the County made a statement regarding discussion of this RFP with anyone outside of the purchasing process and specifically that offerors are to direct questions related to the RFP to the listed purchasing agent only, and are not to engage with other County staff regarding the RFP requirements. This aligns with the statement on page 5 of the RFP which reads “Prior to the award of a contract resulting from this solicitation, Offerors are prohibited from contacting any County staff other than those assigned to the Office of the Purchasing Agent.” Additionally, the County stated interactions of potential offerors would be monitored. As the RFP itself is a publicly available document, can the County clarify if there are other restrictions on potential offerors in discussing this RFP? If so, can the County specifically identify those restrictions?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 23
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: Will the same Selection Advisory Committee (SAC) members from the previous solicitation serve on the SAC for this solicitation?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 24
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: Who makes the decisions on the composition of the Selection Advisory Committee (SAC)?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 25
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: Are interested non-county employees allowed to serve as voting members of a Selection Advisory Committee (SAC)? If yes, please provide instructions on how non-county employees can express their interest to the County. If no, please provide the reason(s) and a copy of any regulations prohibiting participation of interested parties.
Response: Please note that this was a duplicate question submission. Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 26
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: Are interested non-county employees allowed to serve as non-voting members of a Selection Advisory Committee (SAC)? If yes, please provide instructions on how non-county employees can express their interest to the County. If no, please provide the reason(s) and a copy of any regulations prohibiting participation of interested parties.
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 27
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: Page 26 of the RFP, states “The committee will consider the Offeror’s proposed COVID-19 protocols to provide for the safety of residents, workers and visitors to the facility, along with any protection of confidential health information covered by the Health Insurance Portability Act (HIPAA) that is necessitated by the protocols.”. Page 22 of the RFP under Section III. Requirements Application To Both Programs states the offeror will “Develop, together with the County, appropriate COVID-19 protocols to provide for the safety of residents, workers and visitors to the facility.” Can the County clarify how an offeror’s COVID-19 Mitigation Program will be scored in the evaluation of the proposal prior to having an opportunity to develop COVID-19 protocols together with the County as stated?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 28
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: Will the County accept electronic signatures on all Executed Forms required as part of this RFP submission?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 29
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: Can the County confirm the evaluation of “overall satisfaction with the Offeror’s performance” as stated on page 26, Performance Outcome Statistics reflects an evaluation of the data from the customer satisfaction survey result statistics listed on that same page?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 30
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: Does the County utilize a rubric for scoring proposals? If yes, can the County provide a sample rubric? If no, how are evaluators instructed to objectively assign points for each criteria?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 31
Posted: 10/20/2021
Question: Page 26 of the RFP states proposals should “Use dividers with numbered tabs for each of the proposal elements, in the order listed.” One of the elements listed is G. Cost Proposal. Can the County confirm the Cost Proposal should be included as a section of the submission, rather than separately as has been historically required?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Question 32
Posted: 10/20/2021
Question: Page 29 of the RFP, Cost Proposal states "Offerors must use the Cost Proposal Spreadsheet included in this solicitation as Attachment C to provide pricing proposals." Can the County clarify if a Cost Proposal narrative is desired in addition to the Cost Proposal Spreadsheet included as Attachment C in the solicitation, or if the Cost Proposal Spreadsheet would represent the entirely of the Cost Proposal for this RFP submission?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/11/2021
Type of Addition: Addendum 1
Overview: Please see Addendum 1 for information relating to the Pre-Proposal Conference
Deadline: 11/4/2021 12:00 PM
Pre-Bid Meeting Date: 10/11/2021 8:00 AM
Solicitation #: 22-DHS-RFPLW-337
Documents:
Posted: 10/21/2021
Type of Addition: Addendum 2
Overview: Please see Addendum 2 for questions received and answered by the County
Deadline: 11/15/2021 12:00 PM
Solicitation #: 22-DHS-RFPLW-337
Documents:
Posted: 11/12/2021
Type of Addition: Addendum 3
Overview: Please see Addendum 3 for the revised method of award.
Deadline: 11/15/2021 12:00 PM
Documents:
Posted: 11/15/2021
Type of Addition: In Review
Posted: 3/18/2022
Type of Addition: Intent to Award Information
Documents:
Posted: 1/12/2023
Type of Addition: Notice of Lifting of Stay
Documents:
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: DBHDS does not license, have regulations or other oversight of ALFs, and Short-Term Transitional homes are unlicensed. Can the County clarify why there is a requirement on page 16, Item #9 that the Contractor implement DBHDS recommendations identified as part of DBHDS audits and monitoring as part of the Performance Expectations?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Can the County clarify if the proposed housing is required to be located within Arlington County?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Does the County prefer one 15-bed Assisted Living Facility or multiple locations?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: The cost proposal form includes One-Time Start Up Costs. Start up funding has historically excluded specific categories identified by the purchasing agent. Can the County clarify there are no categories that are ineligible to be included as part of start up funding? How is startup funding included in the scoring and evaluation of the cost proposal for the purposes of this RFP?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Will the Short-term Transitional Housing be a single award or awarded to multiple contractors?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Short-Term Transitional Housing Services specifies a minimum of 10 clients per day. Has the County identified a maximum number of clients per day? Does the County desire expanded capacity beyond a minimum of 10 clients per day?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Page 13 of the RFP states “All staff performing clinical functions must be Qualified Mental Health Professionals (QMHPs). The ALF staffing standards do not include a definition of clinical functions. Can the county please define “clinical functions” as related to staffing for the ALFs?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Page 13 of the RFP states the offeror will “Collaborate with the County to determine the most appropriate staffing adjustments necessary to accommodate acute crisis situations as necessary.” How would the contract allow for staffing adjustments in an acute crisis situation?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Page 17 of the RFP states “each home must have a sufficient kitchen facility, living space and bathrooms to accommodate a minimum of 10 residents per day” for Short-Term Transitional Housing. Does the County prefer one 10-bed facility or multiple locations?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Can the County clarify the reason the contractor is required to supply a furniture inventory when the contractor is responsible for purchasing, replacing and will own the furniture at the end of the contract?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: One of the mandatory requirements states the offeror must own or be able to lease housing”. How is the ability to lease evaluated in the RFP process, and how will the County evaluate and score compliance with requirements stated in the Scope of Services (e.g., location, access to transportation, suitability of the physical environment for residents, cost)?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Will the County agree to be the leaseholder for the facility where services will be provided? Alternatively, will the County agree to facilitate a lease agreement between the Contractor and property owner?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Page 20 of the RFP states the offeror will “Ensure that staff are trained and/or certified in the following areas prior to their initial assignments”. Can the County define what is meant by “initial assignments”? ALF standards for training specify “training shall commence no later than 60 days after employment”. Can the County confirm the RFP and subsequent contract requires staff meet all training requirements identified in the RFP prior to working in the ALF?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Can the County provide information regarding how offerors will be evaluated in the scoring for Performance Outcome Statistics? For example, average length of stay is determined by the County’s decisions with respect to admissions and discharges; DLA-20 change scores are individual driven rather than contractor driven. For indefinite stay homes, how would an offeror identify a percentage of participants who successfully completed the program?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/12/2021
Question: Page 16 of the RFP, Item 11 states “Ensure that the medication error rates remain below 2%. Medication errors include: wrong person, wrong dosage, wrong medicine, wrong time, wrong route, medication refusal, medication administered but not recorded, medication reported missing, missed medications, pharmacy non-delivery, missed medications due to staff error and other medication errors. Medication management policies and procedures must comply with state regulatory standards.” §6VAC35-101-1060 of the Code of Virginia allows for documentation of medication refusals, including action taken by staff and §63.2-1808 of the Code of Virginia and referenced in the Assisted Living Facility standards states in part a resident “…is afforded the opportunity to participate in the planning of his program of care and medical treatment at the facility and the right to refuse treatment.” Does the County consider an individual exercising the right of refusal to be a medication error for the purposes of this RFP and subsequent contract?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: How does the County value proximity to a metro stop, a bus stop or alternative transportation options, as noted on page 12, general requirement 3(c)? In other words, are they all valued equally, or does one transportation method have greater value than another?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: With respect to the evaluation of qualifications of the proposed staff, as set forth on page 25, may offerors provide the qualifications of staff who are not employed by the offeror, but who are employed by other entities or persons?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: With respect to the evaluation of facility capabilities and capacity, as set forth on page 25, must offerors provide information about an existing facility under the ownership or control of the offeror, or may offerors provide information about a facility that an offeror might lease only after contract award?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: If offerors may provide information on the capabilities and capacity of a facility that does not presently exist, then why does the Technical Expertise section on page 27 not require offerors to provide any such information on the actual facility that offerors intend to use?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: How will the County evaluate the capabilities and capacity of a facility that does not yet exist under the Technical Expertise factor on page 25?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: How will the County require offerors to demonstrate in the proposal submission that the mandatory requirement on page 27 to “own or be able to lease housing" is met?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: During the pre-proposal conference, the County made a statement regarding discussion of this RFP with anyone outside of the purchasing process and specifically that offerors are to direct questions related to the RFP to the listed purchasing agent only, and are not to engage with other County staff regarding the RFP requirements. This aligns with the statement on page 5 of the RFP which reads “Prior to the award of a contract resulting from this solicitation, Offerors are prohibited from contacting any County staff other than those assigned to the Office of the Purchasing Agent.” Additionally, the County stated interactions of potential offerors would be monitored. As the RFP itself is a publicly available document, can the County clarify if there are other restrictions on potential offerors in discussing this RFP? If so, can the County specifically identify those restrictions?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: Will the same Selection Advisory Committee (SAC) members from the previous solicitation serve on the SAC for this solicitation?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: Who makes the decisions on the composition of the Selection Advisory Committee (SAC)?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: Are interested non-county employees allowed to serve as voting members of a Selection Advisory Committee (SAC)? If yes, please provide instructions on how non-county employees can express their interest to the County. If no, please provide the reason(s) and a copy of any regulations prohibiting participation of interested parties.
Response: Please note that this was a duplicate question submission. Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: Are interested non-county employees allowed to serve as non-voting members of a Selection Advisory Committee (SAC)? If yes, please provide instructions on how non-county employees can express their interest to the County. If no, please provide the reason(s) and a copy of any regulations prohibiting participation of interested parties.
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: Page 26 of the RFP, states “The committee will consider the Offeror’s proposed COVID-19 protocols to provide for the safety of residents, workers and visitors to the facility, along with any protection of confidential health information covered by the Health Insurance Portability Act (HIPAA) that is necessitated by the protocols.”. Page 22 of the RFP under Section III. Requirements Application To Both Programs states the offeror will “Develop, together with the County, appropriate COVID-19 protocols to provide for the safety of residents, workers and visitors to the facility.” Can the County clarify how an offeror’s COVID-19 Mitigation Program will be scored in the evaluation of the proposal prior to having an opportunity to develop COVID-19 protocols together with the County as stated?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: Will the County accept electronic signatures on all Executed Forms required as part of this RFP submission?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: Can the County confirm the evaluation of “overall satisfaction with the Offeror’s performance” as stated on page 26, Performance Outcome Statistics reflects an evaluation of the data from the customer satisfaction survey result statistics listed on that same page?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/15/2021
Question: Does the County utilize a rubric for scoring proposals? If yes, can the County provide a sample rubric? If no, how are evaluators instructed to objectively assign points for each criteria?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/20/2021
Question: Page 26 of the RFP states proposals should “Use dividers with numbered tabs for each of the proposal elements, in the order listed.” One of the elements listed is G. Cost Proposal. Can the County confirm the Cost Proposal should be included as a section of the submission, rather than separately as has been historically required?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.
Posted: 10/20/2021
Question: Page 29 of the RFP, Cost Proposal states "Offerors must use the Cost Proposal Spreadsheet included in this solicitation as Attachment C to provide pricing proposals." Can the County clarify if a Cost Proposal narrative is desired in addition to the Cost Proposal Spreadsheet included as Attachment C in the solicitation, or if the Cost Proposal Spreadsheet would represent the entirely of the Cost Proposal for this RFP submission?
Response: Please Addendum 2 for the response.