R -- TELEPHONE CUSTOMER SERVICE (TCS) STRATEGY

Notice Date

September 1, 2000

Contracting Office

Health Care Financing Administration, Acquisition and Grants Group, C2-21-15, 7500 Security Boulevard, Baltimore, MD., 21244-1850

ZIP Code

21244-1850

Point of Contact

Debbie Strittmatter,Contract Specialist,(410) 786-5136

Description

The Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA) is seeking to identify sources to support the activities of HCFA's Telephone Customer Service (TCS) strategy. The goals of the TCS strategy, the operating model for ongoing and future telephone customer service operations, is to continuously improve Medicare customer satisfaction through the delivery of high quality and cost effective service. In addition to call center operations, the TCS strategy covers functions such as: human resources, customer satisfaction, information technology, training, telephone networking and continuous improvement performance measurement. HCFA has existing telephone customer service projects that support these functions currently. Task orders which will be issued through an Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract will support the continued operation and further enhancement of such existing, ongoing customer service projects plus the development and implementation of new projects. Ongoing projects for which task orders may be awarded include: operation of the national toll free beneficiary call center (Medicare Choices Helpline), accessed via 1-800-Medicare or other designated 800 numbers; implementation, operation and maintenance of a desktop application for Medicare telephone customer service; operation and maintenance of a national interactive voice response (IVR) script or systems; management of a national telephone network; operation of training, quality call monitoring and customer satisfaction survey initiatives; and management and operation of a process for disenrollment actions for people with Medicare. New projects that may be developed will address the changing priorities of the Medicare program, evolving technology, and new customer expectations. These new functions may include, but will not be limited to, World Wide Web assistance, written inquiry response systems, assistance with customer notices, and streamlining and efficiency initiatives. We anticipate that the first task order issued under the IDIQ contract will be to operate the Medicare Choices Helpline, 1-800-Medicare, a toll free call center for people with Medicare. Customer service representatives at the Helpline, in operation nationwide since March 15, 1999, assist beneficiaries, family members and caregivers with questions about Medicare (enrollment, replacement Medicare cards, Medigap, waste, fraud and abuse, coverage, Medicaid, quality of care, etc.) and Medicare health plan options. In many instances, callers are referred to the appropriate HCFA agent/partner. Services offered through 1-800-Medicare include a Reference Center for research and assistance with complex questions, support for Medicare members requesting to disenroll from Medicare health plans, and a print/fulfillment operation for Medicare publications. Between October 1, 1999, and September 30, 2000, (Federal Fiscal Year 2000), approximately 4 million calls will be made to 1-800-Medicare. Anticipated call volume for Fiscal Year 2001 is 4.8 million. As the TCS strategy is further developed and ongoing projects are fully implemented, call volume will increase. The total national call volume from people with Medicare experienced by HCFA's other existing agents, including call centers operated by fiscal intermediaries and carriers, exceeds 16 million annually. HCFA is seeking qualified, expert vendors with demonstrated abilities in national call center operations of a similar scale. Experience should include the direct operation of, or coordination of, activities such as: call center start up, operations and management; print fulfillment; transaction processing; reference center; and reporting. Vendors should also have proven abilities in training development, delivery and maintenance; quality call monitoring design and implementation; and customer satisfaction survey design and implementation. Extensive knowledge of call center operations and management, as well as customer service, is required, along with knowledge of Medicare program operations and of HCFA operations. HCFA is also seeking qualified, expert vendors with demonstrated abilities in one or more component technical areas necessary to support the operation of a national call center(s), or perform research functions related to call centers. These component technical areas are expected to be: 1)desktop design, implementation, and operation; 2) telephone networking; 3) IVR operation and maintenance; 4) IVR script development, implementation, and maintenance; 5) information warehouse development and operation; 6) or similar call center related technical functions. It is essential that the contractor be free of all appearance of or actual conflicts such as the operation or sale of managed care plans, Medigap policies, durable medical equipment, dialysis services or any other related product or service. Specifically, the contractor must not have any relationships or arrangements through its business operations or its employees that could be considered as possibly lessening the company's objectivity concerning any aspect of the referrals or information provided to the Medicare beneficiaries. Offerors interested in documenting their capability to perform in any or all of the areas above should respond to this sources sought announcement within 15 days of its publication. The following specific information is requested: 1) company descriptive literature; 2) specific related corporate experience broken down by the component areas listed above; and, 3) indicate whether the services to support such activities are customarily available in the commercial market and if so what are the customary practices, including pricing, discounts, warranties, etc under which commercial sales of these services are made. The Government is considering reserving some of the component technical areas identified above for small businesses if appropriate. Small Businesses are encouraged to provide data for specific technical areas for consideration. Specify the name and telephone number of a point of contact and indicate your size standard under North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) (formerly known as the SIC code) #561422 with a small business size standard of $5 million. Additional information on NAICS codes can be found at www.census.gov. The purpose of this synopsis is to identify potential responsible sources only, does not constitute an RFP, and is not to be construed as a commitment by the Government. The information that you provide will be evaluated to identify capable potential sources if funding is allocated for this effort. The Government does not intend to award a contract on the basis of this notice or otherwise pay for any information solicited. Documentation should be sent to Health Care Financing Administration, Attn: Debbie Strittmatter, Rm C2-21-15, 7500 Security Blvd, Baltimore, MD 21244. Questions may be referred to Debbie Strittmatter at 410-786-5136.

Record

Loren Data Corp. 20000906/RSOL019.HTM (W-245 SN492648)