The Alaska Department of Health (DOH) has issued a request for proposals (RFP) for statewide health information exchange (HIE) services.
The state is seeking a contractor to provide HIE services that offer secure, modern solutions and achieve optimal administrative outcomes through technical support. The system will support Alaska’s health care providers and residents.
DOH officials plan to budget $6 million for the HIE’s first two years of operation. Proposals that exceed $6 million over that time period will be considered non-responsive. The budget for the remaining years of the contract will be determined at a future date. Approval of a contract will be contingent upon state legislative appropriation and the availability of federal funding.
Proposals must be received by 2 p.m. on Aug. 15th. Late proposals will be disqualified for evaluation. Proposals must be sent through email to [email protected]. The technical proposal and cost proposal must be sent as separate documents. The email must include the RFP number (2022-0600-5055) in the subject line. Emails cannot be larger than 20 megabytes.
Contractors must have operational experience in providing HIE services in at least one state. DOH expects initial evaluations to be completed by Aug. 26th, with an intent to award notice scheduled to be released on Nov. 30th. A contract is expected to be issued by Dec. 13th.
DOH will hold a virtual educational meeting and pre-proposal conference from 10 a.m. to noon on July 18th. Officials will discuss the work that will be performed with prospective contractors, answer questions concerning the RFP, and provide a thorough education on the RFP process. Those interested can call 907-202-7104. The phone conference identification number is 204686279.
Alaska has used Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act funding to contract HIE services since 2010, and is nearing the end of that contract. The state will pursue ongoing HIE support with Medicaid Management Information Systems and Medicaid Enterprise System funding from CMS.
Alaska has 11 non-federal, short-term, acute-care hospitals providing a total of 1,290 staffed beds and 13 critical access hospitals. It has 58 tribal health centers, 160 tribal community health aide clinics, and 5 residential substance abuse treatment centers. Current electronic health record systems used in Alaska health care facilities include Epic, Cerner, Athenahealth, Health Fusion, and Greenway Health.