Purchasing & Bidding

The posted rates for VRFA are significantly more that we are accustomed to charging for patient transport. Will the VRFA require the ambulance provider to match their current posted rates or will bidders be able to propose a rate lower than what is posted?
The VRFA strives to match the transport fee of the contractor.

In the VRFA service area, does the entire department practice under King County EMS guidelines or does the south end of the response area (parts of Station 34’s response zone) practice under Pierce County guidelines, as the response jurisdiction is technically within Pierce County boundaries?
The VRFA practices only under King County guidelines.

Would the Fire Authority advise what ePCR the system is currently being used?
The VRFA uses ESO.

Can the Authority provide payer mix data for VRFA BLS transports broken down by provider (Authority vs. private Contractor)?
Some or all of this data may be proprietary to a private third party.

Can the Authority provide the current number of VRFA ambulances dedicated to BLS transports?
The VRFA has two dedicated aid cars for BLS transports.

Does the Authority anticipate it will keep the same level of staffing throughout the contract period as current staffing?
The VRFA anticipates that the level of staffing on the transport capable aid cars will remain the same.

Can the Authority provide the current contractor’s response time performance in 2018, 2019, and year to date 2020?
Some or all of this data may be proprietary to a private third party.

Will the department provide historical response and transport data for 2018, 2019 and YTD, including: Date of Service, time of day & day of week, location, response mode, latitude & longitude, number of patients transported, call received time, on-scene time of the unit, transport time, and time at destination.
Some or all of this data may be proprietary to a private third party.

(RFP, pg. 5, section 6.3). Will the Authority confirm if the Fire Ambulance Transport Fee listed for 2020 on the department’s website is also the same fee schedule used by the private contractors?
The VRFA strives to match the transport fee of the contractor

(Agreement, pg. 15, section 6): Are the totals listed in the 2020 Rate Schedule effective as of October 1, 2020 according to section 6.2 of the Agreement?
Yes.

(Agreement, pg. 15, section 6.2) When will the selected contractor’s proposed rates be in effect?
The agreement will be in effect February 1, 2021

(Agreement, pg. 5, section 3.3). Can the Authority provide the current number of contractor-provided ambulances dedicated to the Authority (daily unit Hours if not 24-hour shifts)?
Some or all of this data may be proprietary to a private third party.

(Agreement, pg. 7, section 5.5). Can the Authority provide the amount of liquidated damages assessed against the current provider in 2018, 2019, and year to date 2020?
Some or all of this data may be proprietary to a private third party.

(Agreement, pg. 7, section 5.7). Are the response time performance requirements in the current contract identical to the proposed contract?
No.

(Agreement, pg. 10 & 11, section 5.11.3) Would the Fire Authority advise what CAD is used by Valley Communications?
Bidders will need to contact Valley Communications for this answer.

(Agreement, pg. 15, section 7.1) To avoid anti-kickback/compliance concerns, would the Fire Authority please confirm the $5,000 per month payment to the VFRA from Contractor pursuant to Section 7.1 does not exceed the cost of the VFRA to provide the services set forth in Sections 7.1.1 through 7.1.3.
Additional information is needed from you to answer this question. Can you please cite the statute(s), regulation(s) or other regulatory provision(s) under which your concerns are raised.

VRFA Clarification – It is our opinion that Anti-kickback statutes are designed to prevent unlawful profiteering from Medicare, not to prevent generalized contributions to administer an agreement or contributing to South King CARES.

(Agreement, pg. 16, section 7.3) To avoid anti-kickback/compliance concerns, would the Fire Authority consider removing the annual charity donation requirement in Section 7.3?
Additional information is needed from you to answer this question. Can you please cite the statute(s), regulation(s) or other regulatory provision(s) under which your concerns are raised.

VRFA Clarification – It is our opinion that Anti-kickback statutes are designed to prevent unlawful profiteering from Medicare, not to prevent generalized contributions to administer an agreement or contributing to South King CARES.

(Agreement, pg. 16, section 8.1 & 8.2): For any response time greater than 17 minutes, would the contractor be assessed liquidated damages of $250 per section 8.1 plus $500 per section 8.2 (e.g., would the total liquidated damages be $750 in this instance)?
8.2 would apply as a stand-alone liquidated damage.

(Agreement, pg. 17, section 8.6). Does the Fire Authority allow the use of GPS data to validate on scene time in the event on-scene arrival time was not captured?
No.

(Agreement pg. 28, Appendix A) The BLS Transport data indicates the proportion of Private Transports out of the Total BLS transports has decreased since 2017. Would the Authority provide information on any operational changes or other factors that has resulted in this decrease?
The VRFA has not made any operational changes and is not aware of any other factors.