SOURCES SOUGHT
R -- Healthcare Data Analysis and Statistical Products
- Notice Date
- 5/14/2013
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- NAICS
- 541990
— All Other Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
- Contracting Office
- Department of Health and Human Services, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Contracts Management, 540 Gaither Road, Rockville, Maryland, 20850
- ZIP Code
- 20850
- Solicitation Number
- HHS-AHRQ-SBSS-14-10003
- Archive Date
- 6/4/2013
- Point of Contact
- Kenya C. Crawford, Phone: 3014271705
- E-Mail Address
-
Kenya.Crawford@ahrq.hhs.gov
(Kenya.Crawford@ahrq.hhs.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- This is a Small Business Sources Sought notice. This is NOT a solicitation for proposals, proposal abstracts, or quotations. The purpose of this notice is to obtain information regarding: (1) the availability and capability of qualified small business sources; (2) whether they are small businesses; HUBZone small businesses; service-disabled, veteran-owned small businesses; 8(a) small businesses; veteran-owned small businesses; woman-owned small businesses; or small disadvantaged businesses; and (3) their size classification relative to the proposed acquisition. Your responses to the information requested will assist the Government in determining the appropriate acquisition method, including whether a set-aside is possible. An organization that is not considered a small business under the applicable NAICS code should not submit a response to this notice. Background The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) conducts research and provides information on a number of critical issues related to national healthcare research and quality which are of particular interest to government agencies, legislative bodies, health policy makers and other health professionals concerned with health care utilization, patient outcomes, quality, patient safety, expenditures, insurance coverage and components of primary care. The research is primarily based on the annual Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS), and the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP). Other research areas include health care quality and patient-based outcomes. Data for these additional analyses are based on a variety of survey data, administrative and medical records, clinical trials data, registry data, pharmaceuticals and prescription drug data, as well as patient-based outcomes and health-related quality-of-life (HRQL) assessment data sets including, but not limited to, the Consumer Assessment of Health Plans Survey (CAHPS), the Medicare and Medicaid administrative, assessment and survey data (e.g., Health Outcomes Survey, Nursing Home Minimum Data Set (MDS), Medicare QIO (formerly known as PRO) data, and the Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey (MCBS)), other federal and state government health system and related data (e.g., VA, DoD and HRSA health system data, CDC surveys such as NHIS, NHANES, BRFSS, SLAITS), and commercially available health data (e.g., MEDSTAT Marketscan, state based claims data and NCQA Quality Compass). AHRQ also has a congressional mandate to produce annual reports to the nation on health care quality and disparities in health care. Both of these reports use many of the same databases above to produce their analyses but may utilize other data sources in an effort to provide as comprehensive a picture as possible on these issues to policymakers. Additionally, AHRQ is responsible for implementing the Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act. In this role, AHRQ has operational responsibilities for implementing and maintaining the Patient Safety Organization (PSO) program, and for developing the Network of Patient Safety Databases (NPSD). The NPSD will produce analysis reports for the NHQR and NHDR as well as a report to Congress on effective strategies for reducing medical errors and increasing patient safety. Purpose and Objective Please be mindful that while there are IT components in this project, this is NOT an IT requirement. The project will be content-driven, supported by information technology. This potential requirement supports AHRQ's programs by supplying analytic services using the use of statistical software such as SAS and STATA and providing database management services using these same statistical programs. The analytic services requirement includes econometric and behavioral analysis, modeling and microsimulation analysis. While a number of data sources are used, the majority of work involves the use of large complex nationally representative data and surveys. Anticipated activities will include: This requirement includes providing statistical and econometric analysis services for staff research projects involved in healthcare research using a variety of behavioral and econometric analysis. These analytic services will cover a large variety of topics germane to health services research including evaluations of components of the Affordable Care Act. The majority of analytic tasks under this requirement will use two major databases sponsored by the Agency - the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS) and the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP). The MEPS is an annual longitudinal survey (with an overlapping panel design) of families in the United States that collects information on healthcare use, expense and payment (as well as access to health care, health care quality income and employment). Each year the annual MEPS file (since 1996) includes thousands of variables arranged in more than 50 hierarchical files. The number of observations in each file can range from a few thousand to almost 100,000. Complete documentation about MEPS databases can be accessed at http://www.meps.ahrq.gov/ The HCUP is an ongoing activity that collects hospital discharge abstracts for most hospital inpatient care in the United States. Each year the annual HCUP files (since 1988) include several hundred variables arranged in several linkable files for each database. On average, HCUP produces approximately 200 large, record-level data bases each year; the number of observations in each file can range from several hundred thousand to several million. Complete documentation about HCUP databases can be accessed at http://www.hcup-us.ahrq.gov/ In addition to analytic tasks using the MEPS and HCUP, some analytic tasks may also be based on a variety of survey data, administrative and medical records including, clinical trials data, pharmaceuticals and prescription drug data, as well as patient-based outcomes and health-related quality-of-life (HRQL) assessment data sets including, but not limited to, the Consumer Assessment of Health Plans Survey (CAHPS), the Medicare and Medicaid administrative, assessment and survey data (e.g., Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey (MCBS), Home Health Compare, Nursing Home Compare, Hospital Cost data, CMS claims data, CMS Chronic Condition Data Warehouse (CCW) data), other federal and state government health system and related data (e.g., Census Bureau data (Current Population Survey (CPS), American Community Survey (ACS)), National Institute of Health (NIH) and Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) health system data (Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER),Area Resource File (ARF), Center of Disease Control surveys such as (National Health Interview Survey) NHIS, National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS), Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), and commercially available health data (e.g., Medi-span Master Drug Data Base (MDDB), MarketScan Database and HMO InterStudy Database). This potential requirement will also provide data file development and specifications for the AHRQ Patient Safety Portfolio, specifically for work on the Network of Patient Safety Databases (NPSD). This requirement will also include the analytic file development and conduct of analyses related to the preparation of the National Healthcare Quality Report (NHQR) and the National Healthcare Disparities Report (NHDR); and for analyses related to the preparation of reports on effective strategies for reducing medical errors and increasing patient safety, and other related tasks. Additional activities under this potential requirement shall include management and maintenance of MEPS website. The MEPS website is the primary vehicle for releasing the files and analysis developed under this requirement to the public. This requirement also includes the development of web tools for the MEPS website and maintaining the HCUP Querynet tool on the HCUP website. This requirement will also include consultation to AHRQ on security arrangements for confidential data. Project Requirements There are three major tasks for this project, each having specific requirements and deliverables. Approximately seventy-five percent of the project work is concentrated in the Analytics task (task 1). Task 1 - Analytic Services This task includes: • Analytics for approximately 100 specific research projects each year, including the development of analytic files, creation of new analytic variables and documentation of the same. This also includes analysis for the statistical web publications. • Conducting analytic and statistical editing of files in the MEPS. This includes running edit checks, resolving logical inconsistencies identified by information about health and economic variables, using data replacement techniques including weighted sequential hot deck and other means to account for missing data, developing an approach to data analysis to account for sampling weights and variance estimation and performing a variety of analytically driven quality control checks. This also includes analysis needed for design and selection for the MEPS Survey sample. • Conducting microsimulation analysis using MEPS data - AHRQ's MEDSIM includes a number of complex algorithms for data analysis (written in SAS) including those concerning taxes, benefits and state/federal program eligibility. • Developing and documenting public use files. • Updating MEPS data products currently on the website and developing new ones. • Management of the MEPS website including, updating existing data products, posting public use files, statistical publications and any other new products as directed by the COR. The task additionally includes maintaining and enhancing statistical tools, quality control activities, and assuring compliance of the website and its products with 508 and other Federal requirements. • Providing data security for confidential data stored at the Contractor's site and advising AHRQ about data security matters. • Store, catalogue and maintain HCUP files, HCUP secondary data files, and other administrative data files. Maintain, edit, update, and document files in the HCUP database. This task shall include designing, testing, and running programs for analytic needs. • Creating and documenting new variables and edited versions of existing variables, including updating files when appropriate and documenting updates, maintaining histories of variables created or edited, and keeping track of the latest and best versions of variables that have been revised. • Producing special estimates from HCUP data or merging HCUP public use data with data from other sources and produce special public use files containing merged data, in response to requests from outside researchers. • Providing analytical programming services accessing the HCUP intramural inpatient and outpatient data, other commercially available data. • Identifying appropriate data sources and measures for the NHQR and NHDR, including ongoing evaluations of the private sector data sources for use in the NHQR and NHDR. This work also includes possible use of Medicare and Medicaid claims and assessment data. • Developing appropriate measure specifications that can be used in the analysis needed for the quality and disparities reports. • Conducting analyses of trends in quality and disparities across measure sets. • Providing analysis of technical requirements, complex specifications, quality control and technical approaches for PSO related IT databases and systems. The activities shall include addressing issues of database integrity, security, confidentiality, and privacy related to the PSO team activities and Patient Safety Act. Task 2 AHRQ Data Center • Maintaining a secure data analysis center for transfer of data files and for outside researchers to use restricted files, including onsite staff from 9 am until 5 pm. • Installing MEPS and secondary data files. This includes being able to manage data in a variety of formats, comparing data received with its documentation to check for obvious inconsistencies, and performing logical and other edits designed by the contractor to verify the integrity of the data on installed files. Task 3 Dissemination of MEPS and HCUP Data a) Development and Management of Web Tools and MEPS Website This task includes: • Upgrading, enhancing and maintenance of online statistical computing system (HCUPnet). • Upgrading, enhancing and maintenance of online statistical computing system (MEPSnet). • Preparing, managing, posting and Coordinating MEPS Data Products on MEPS website. • General tasks related to managing MEPS website. b) Analytic Services at professional Conferences • Participating as faculty for MEPS workshops and providing technical services throughout the MEPS and HCUP workshops. • Providing technical staff for MEPS and/or HCUP exhibits and promotional booths at professional conferences and meetings. Anticipated Period of Performance The anticipated period of performance is April 2014 - April 2015 with four (4), one (1) year option periods, from April 2015 to April 2019. Capability Statement/Information Sought Interested qualified small business organizations should submit a tailored capability statement for this requirement, not to exceed 10 single-sided pages (including all attachments, resumes, charts, etc.), presented in single-space and using a 12-point font size minimum, that clearly details the ability to perform the aspects of the notice described above. Statements should include information regarding respondents': (a) staff expertise, including their availability, experience, and formal and other training; (b) current in-house capability and capacity to perform the work; (c) prior completed projects of similar nature; (d) corporate experience and management capability; and (e) examples of prior completed Government contracts including scale, complexity, references, and other related information. Capability statements should also include an indication of current certified small business status; this indication should be clearly marked on the first page of your capability statement, as well as the eligible small business concern's name, point of contact, address and DUNS number. It is required that the offerer has extensive knowledge of and experience in the use of MEPS, HCUP or similar large, complex federal data sources. The offerer shall have extensive expertise and experience in conducting analysis with MEPS and HCUP data sets. The proposed team shall have extensive experience in statistical analysis especially with complex survey data such as from MEPS and HCUP, support of econometric analysis, conducting state of the art modeling and microsimulation, and the management of multiple complex hierarchical, multi-user databases and large administrative encounter-level and clinical data in direct support of health services research. The contractor staff shall be experienced in the use and analysis of longitudinal, time dependent data obtained from nationally representative complex multi-stage clustered sample designs employing disproportionate sampling techniques. The team members shall be comprised of a core staff of seasoned professionals in fields such as use of computers in health services research, including use of SAS, STATA, SUDAAN techniques and software for sample selection, missing data imputation (including weighted sequential hot-decking), estimation and hypothesis testing with data from a complex survey design, micro-simulation modeling, and econometric analysis of micro-level data. Experience in analysis of health care quality (both clinical and patient satisfaction), patient outcomes, access and continuity/coordination of care, utilization, and/or expenditure data along with collaboration with health services researchers on statistical analyses and behavioral research appearing in government reports, in scholarly books or journals, or similar publications is also required. Additional experience and capacity for development of web based data tools and production of web based statistical publications, in addition to experience in overall maintenance of the website is also required. Information Submission Instructions All capability statements sent in response to this SMALL BUSINESS SOURCES SOUGHT notice must be submitted electronically (via email) to Kenya Crawford, Contract Specialist, at Kenya.Crawford@ahrq.hhs.gov in Microsoft Word (MS) or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF), by May 29, 2013, 10:00 AM EST. All responses must be received by the specified due date and time in order to be considered. ANY RESPONSES RECEIVED AFTER THAT DATE AND TIME WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED. Disclaimer and Important Notes This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in response. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. Any organization responding to this notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed to allow the Government to determine the organizations' qualifications to perform the work. Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. After a review of the responses received, a pre-solicitation synopsis and solicitation may be published in Federal Business Opportunities. However, responses to this notice will not be considered adequate responses to a solicitation. Confidentiality No proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information should be included in your response. The Government reserves the right to use any non-proprietary technical information in any resultant solicitations.
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