SOLICITATION NOTICE
Q -- Healthcare for Homeless Veterans
- Notice Date
- 12/5/2010
- Notice Type
- Presolicitation
- NAICS
- 623220
— Residential Mental Health and Substance Abuse Facilities
- Contracting Office
- Department of Veterans Affairs;VAMC;1400 Blackhorse Hill RD;Coatesville PA 19320
- ZIP Code
- 19320
- Solicitation Number
- VA24411RP0056
- Archive Date
- 1/19/2011
- Point of Contact
- Joseph Smith
- E-Mail Address
-
ct
- Small Business Set-Aside
- Total Small Business
- Description
- Safe Haven Model Demonstration Project Healthcare for Homeless Veterans (HCHV) Contract Residential Care Statement of Work I.Introduction The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Five-Year Plan to End Homelessness Among Veterans calls for enhancing current homeless service capacity as well as developing new programs and initiatives in concert with community and federal partners. The intent of this Statement of Work (SOW) is for VA medical centers to engage community provider(s) to offer homeless Veterans services through a Safe Haven model of residential care. II.Purpose Under the contract authority of VA s Healthcare for Homeless Veterans (HCHV) Contract Residential Care programs, VA medical centers will solicit community organizations to provide Safe Haven services as a specialty model. This model of HCHV residential care will offer the minimal services under the HCHV Contract Residential Care program enhanced by the services as defined below. These services must be put forth in the solicitation. Significant deviation from these services can dilute the model as prescribed, and thus disrupt program evaluation and fidelity studies. The National Center on Homelessness Among Veterans will provide training for initial program development for both the provider and VA staff. Additionally, the Center will formulate the evaluation protocol and program fidelity measures. VA medical centers will contract through procedures in line with their own business practices and contracting services. Costs associated with Veteran care will be determined by bed days of care, per month. III. Policy The Secretary of the VA has set a zero-tolerance policy for homelessness within the Veteran population. As part of the Five-Year Plan to End Homelessness Among Veterans, the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) intends to increase both capacity of existing programs and services offered to program participants. This five-year plan calls for utilizing new models of care, not previously offered by VA. IV.Background The VA has been providing direct and specialized services for homeless Veterans for over 20 years. Beginning in 1987 with 43 pilot programs that provided street outreach and residential community services, VA Homeless Programs have developed and expanded to become the largest integrated provider of homeless services in the country. Despite these resources, on any given night VA estimates that there are still over 107,000 Veterans who are homeless. Recent national trends in service provision for the homeless outside of the VA system include the utilization of Safe Havens as an alternative to shelter care or as a placement post unsuccessful discharge from an inpatient or residential treatment program due to relapse-related issues. A Safe Haven is a form of supportive housing that serves hard-to-reach homeless persons with severe mental illnesses and/or substance use disorders who are on the streets and have been unable or unwilling to participate in more traditional supportive services. VA is limited by current grant authorities and existing program structures and practices and cannot fund harm-reduction treatment models. VA has been unable to provide the types of services focused on shelter diversion and early stabilization in community-based environments and has been criticized by outside organizations for not having this component of the continuum of care. V.Scope of Work 1.Safe Haven provider will offer a 24-hour staffed transitional residence in Philadelphia, PA.. The residence must have 25 beds clustered exclusively for Veterans. The provider must be able to accommodate both male and female Veterans. If the residence cannot accommodate both male and female Veterans at one location, the provider must make available equivalent facilities and services for the opposite gender. The residence must provide onsite laundry, meals, and computer access for Veterans. 2.Safe Haven provider will target chronically homeless (as defined by HUD) with serious mental illness (as defined by VHA) and substance use problems. 3.Safe Haven provider will offer a low-demand environment with a minimum set of rules designed to re-establish trust in the chronically homeless Veteran and engage the Veteran in needed treatment services. a.Acceptance of treatment cannot be a condition of admission or continued stay. b.Abstinence from alcohol or drugs cannot be a condition of treatment or continued stay. c.Infractions of rules should be used as opportunities for engagement. 4.Outreach will be conducted by the Safe Haven provider and VA homeless outreach staff. 5.The provider must have the ability to accommodate immediate admissions 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. All admissions must have concurrence of VA. If a Veteran presents at the facility during weekends or at night, the Safe Haven provider may accept the Veteran, however, VA staff have right of approval/disapproval for payment. 6.Safe Haven staff will develop a highly individualized treatment plan with each Veteran consistent with low-demand program goals. 7.Safe Haven provider will encourage Veterans to work towards transitional or permanent housing within six months of admission. All extensions beyond six months will require approval of VA. 8.Safe Haven provider will collect and maintain evaluation data required by the VA National Center on Homelessness Among Veterans for the Safe Haven Model Demonstration Project. 9.Safe Haven provider will ensure facility meets all applicable life/safety codes and other standards/compliance requirements as determined by VA, including American with Disabilities Act accessibility. 10.Safe Haven provider will allow VA staff to inspect the facility and/or review Veteran participant treatment protocols at any time determined necessary by VA. 11.Safe Haven provider will ensure that transportation is available for Veterans to attend medical appointments, search for transitional or permanent housing and address other care needs. 12.Safe Haven provider selected for the demonstration project must have at least two years of direct experience as a provider of a Safe Haven Program or program demonstrating the low-demand model. The provider selected must also have at least two years of direct experience working with homeless Veterans in partnership with the Department of Veterans Affairs through one or more VA homeless housing program (such as HCHV Contract Residential Care, Grant & Per Diem,or HUD-VASH). 13.Safe Haven provider selected for the demonstration project must be able to provide onsite office space for one full-time VA Safe Haven Coordinator. VI.Location of Performance Work will be performed at the contractor s facilities in the Philadelphia, PA.. Government furnished workspace will not be provided for this effort. However, the contractor will be required to attend frequent meetings and planning sessions at the medical center. VII.Contract Type -- Labor Hour VIII.Travel and Other Direct Costs Safe Haven provider will ensure that transportation is available for Veterans to attend medical appointments, search for transitional or permanent housing and address other care needs.
- Web Link
-
FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/spg/VA/CoVAMC542/CoVAMC542/VA24411RP0056/listing.html)
- Record
- SN02338668-W 20101207/101205233022-6e673a36ef932789fc847570bd25ea6e (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)
| FSG Index | This Issue's Index | Today's FBO Daily Index Page |