INVITATION FOR BIDS”Field Office Health Insurance”  -IRI عودة إلى الفرص

Procurement Number: MENA2024T04o  

Open Date: October 22, 2024

 Questions Deadline: November 10, 2024

 Closing Deadline: November 20, 2024

 Geographical Area Restrictions: 937  

Background:  

The International Republican Institute (IRI) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, organization  dedicated to advancing freedom and democracy worldwide. Since 1983, IRI has worked to  develop democratic institutions and ideals, carrying out a variety of international programs  to promote freedom, self-government and the rule of law worldwide. IRI provides technical  assistance in the areas of political party strengthening, developing civic institutions and open  elections, promoting democratic governance and advancing the rule of law.  

The IRI Tunisia program is seeking an insurance provider who can provide high quality  medical insurance coverage for IRI local staff in Tunisia.  

Period of Performance:  

March 1, 2025, to February 28, 2026, with the option to extend for a total duration of up to  5 years in four one-year increments.  

Statement of Work:  

The selected insurance provider shall be responsible for delivering comprehensive medical  health insurance coverage for local staff employees based in Tunisia and their eligible  dependents. The bidder is required to present the full range of health insurance policies  available for a group of 10-15 policyholders. Proposals must include detailed information  regarding the extent of coverage, specifying whether costs will be fully covered (100%) or  partially covered, and, if partial, the applicable percentage for each item. The following  coverage details are requested:  

 Is there a network of doctors that is covered? If not, can the employee visit any  doctor?  

 Is each doctor’s visit paid by insurance at 100%? If not Specify the employee’s share  of the cost.  

 Specify the scope of dental coverage, including surgical extraction & filling, root  canal therapy, scaling, dental prescriptions and dental x-rays. Will each of the above  be covered in full or part?  

A nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing democracy worldwide 

 Specify coverage of optical services, including yearly vision exams, surgeries,  accidental injuries, etc.  

 Provide details on maternity benefits, including extent of coverage, the frequency of  office visits pre- and post-delivery, C-sections and emergency procedures, indicating  whether covered in full or part  

 Specify diagnostic investigations coverage, including CT scan, MRI scan, blood work,  and echocardiography.  

 Provide details on the coverage for cancer-related investigation and surgeries .

 Specify the availability of annual health checkups  

 Detail the scope of emergency service coverage at local hospitals. 

 Clarify the age limit for dependent children’s coverage  

 Provide details on the scope of coverage for other major illnesses, including  disabilities and ongoing conditions  

 Is there an annual limit on per-employee expenses for health treatment? 

 What are the terms and conditions for terminating an agreement with the insurance  provider? What is the required notice period?  

 Can new beneficiaries (spouse, dependent, new staff member) be added to or  removed from the plan during the contract period? If so, specify the cost adjustment  per person.  

 Clarify policy regarding coverage for any preexisting conditions of policyholders. 

 Indicate the typical timeframe for processing reimbursements and claims 

 Confirm whether a direct settlement network is available.  

 Specify waiting periods for coverage or specific treatment types.  

 List any exclusions from coverage.  

 Confirm availability to provide a detailed list of available hospitals across Tunisia 

 Confirm whether a coordinator/representative will be assigned to handle all  matters related to IRI  

Technical Bid:  

Interested bidders must present the technical bids outlining the following information:

   Bids must be submitted in English, written in Times New Roman, 12-point font.   

 Proposal should have a maximum of thirty-five (35) pages, not including any required  appendices, which have no page limit   

 Bids must provide detailed coverage information for the following:    o Policy cost per member (IRI staff) with and without dependents included.    o Quality of coverage, which consists of:   

 Procedures covered under the policy.    

 Additional value-added services like free medical check-up.   

 Bid must meet the following technical criteria:  

o Can provide comprehensive health insurance inside and throughout Tunisia for  staff and dependents  

o Provider is registered in the target county.  

o Able to provide the services listed  

If the Bidder is a U.S. organization/resident, or a foreign organization/resident which has  income effectively connected with the conduct of activities in the U.S. or has an office or a 

place of business or a fiscal paying agent in the U.S., the technical bids must contain Bidder’s  Taxpayer Identification Number.  

Price information should be presented as a firm-fixed Unit Price for each of the deliverables  identified below and in the format of the table below. Pricing must be valid for at least 60  (sixty) calendar days after the due date for proposal submission. The proposed Unit Price  should be fixed and inclusive of all costs to perform, including inspection services,  transportation, taxes, import duties (if any), and other levies. If there are any additional fees  not reflected in the table below, such pricing must be fully described in the bid. Bids must be  submitted in TND Tunisian Dinar payments under any resulting contract will be made in  this currency.  

Deliverable Unit Cost*  

Provider must propose an itemized list of costs associated with coverage options and  criteria.    

Payment will be made either quarterly or semi-annually.  

Bids must provide detailed coverage information for the following:    

o Policy cost per member (IRI staff) with dependents or without dependents  included   

o Quality of coverage, which consists of:  Procedures covered under the  policy; Additional value-added services like free medical check-up.   

*Please specify if the rates are inclusive or exclusive of VAT or any other taxes or fees.  

IFB Terms and Conditions:  

1. Prospective Bidders are requested to review clauses incorporated by reference  in the section “Notice Listing Contract Clauses Incorporated by Reference”. By  submitting a bid, bidder agrees to comply with all terms, conditions, and  provisions included in the solicitation and agreement to the services identified  above, and will specifically identify any disagreement with or exceptions to the  terms, conditions, and provisions.  
2. IRI may reject any or all bids if such is within IRI’s interest.  
3. The Bidder’s initial bid should contain the Bidder’s best offer.  
4. IRI reserves the right to make multiple awards or partial awards if, after  considering administrative burden, it is in IRI’s best interest to do so.  5. Discussions with Bidders following the receipt of a bid do not constitute a  rejection or counteroffer by IRI.  
5. IRI will hold all submissions as confidential and shall not be disclosed to third  parties. IRI reserves the right to share bids internally, across divisions, for the  purposes of evaluating the bids.  
6. If IRI continues to require the goods and services and the price remains  reasonable and within market norms, resulting contract may be renewed each  year for up to 5 years with 30 days’ notice to the Contractor. Bidder must establish  any price increase for each renewal year in the initial bid. 
7. Bidders confirm that the prices in the bid/proposal/application/quote have been  arrived at independently, without any consultation, communication, or  agreement with any other bidder or competitor for the purpose of restricting  competition.  
8. By applying to this IFB, applicant is certifying that if it is awarded a contract, none  of funds payable under the resulting contract will be used to (1) procure or obtain,  extend or renew a contract to procure or obtain; (2) enter into a contract (or  extend or renew a contract) to procure; or (3) obtain the equipment, services, or  systems that uses covered telecommunications equipment or services as a  substantial or essential component of any system, or as critical technology as part  of any system in compliance with the National Defense Authorization Act. Covered  telecommunications equipment and services mean any of the following:  
9. Telecommunications equipment produced by Huawei Technologies  Company or ZTE Corporation (or any subsidiary or affiliate of such  entities).  
10. For the purpose of public safety, security of government facilities, physical  security surveillance of critical infrastructure, and other national security  purposes, video surveillance and telecommunications equipment  produced by Hytera Communications Corporation, Hangzhou Hikvision  Digital Technology Company, or Dahua Technology Company (or any  subsidiary or affiliate of such entities).  

iii. Telecommunications or video surveillance services provided by such  entities or using such equipment.  

200. Telecommunications or video surveillance equipment or services  produced or provided by an entity that the Secretary of Defense, in  consultation with the Director of the National Intelligence or the Director  of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, reasonably believes to be an entity  owned or controlled by, or otherwise connected to, the government of a  covered foreign country. (2 CFR 200.216).  
201. Bidders agree to disclose as part of the bid submission:  
202. Any close, familial, or financial relationships with IRI staff and agents. For  example, the bidder must disclose if a bidder’s mother conducts volunteer  trainings for IRI.  
203. Any family or financial relationship with other bidders submitting bids. For  example, if the bidder’s father owns a company that is submitting another  bid, the bidder must state this.  
204. Any other action that might be interpreted as potential conflict of interest.  

Evaluation and Award Process:  

1. IRI may contact any Bidder for clarification or additional information, but Bidders are  advised that IRI intends to evaluate the offers based on the written bids and reserves  the right to make decisions based solely on the information provided with the initial  bids. IRI may but is not obligated to conduct additional negotiations with the most  highly rated Bidders prior to award of a contract, and may at its sole discretion elect  to issue contracts to one or more Bidders.  
2. Mathematical errors will be corrected in the following manner: If a discrepancy exists  between the total price proposed and the total price resulting from multiplying the  unit price by the corresponding amounts, then the unit price will prevail and the total 

price will be corrected. If there were a discrepancy between the numbers written out  in words and the amounts in numbers, then the amount expressed in words will  prevail. If the Bidder does not accept the correction, the offer will be rejected.  

3. IRI may determine that a bid is unacceptable if the prices proposed are materially  unbalanced between line items or sub-line items. Unbalanced pricing exists when,  despite an acceptable total evaluated price, the price of one or more contract line  items is significantly overstated or understated as indicated by the application of cost  or price analysis techniques. A bid may be rejected if IRI determines that the lack of  balance poses an unacceptable risk.  
4. IRI will conduct a source selection based as follows: best value  

IRI intends to make an award to the responsible Bidder based on the following  evaluation factors:  

Technical Evaluation 50  Level of comprehensive medical coverage provided for each  

policyholder including procedures, pre-existing conditions, mental  

50  

healthcare, hospitals in-network, and eye procedures.  

Price 50  Reasonable cost per staff and dependent for appropriate coverage 50  

IRI intends to evaluate bids in accordance with these factors and make an award to  the responsible bidder whose proposal is most advantageous to the program.  

5. If a cost realism analysis is performed, cost realism may be considered in evaluating  performance or price.  

Submission Instructions:  

Bids must be submitted via email to Olfa Ghodhbani Finance Officer at oghodhbani@iri.org with the subject line IFB MENA2024T04o by the deadline listed above.  

IRI Obligations  

Issuance of this IFB does not constitute and award commitment on the part of IRI, nor does  it commit IRI to pay for costs incurred in the preparation and submission of a quotation.  

Notice Listing Contract Clauses Incorporated by Reference  

IRI is required to make the contractor subject to the clauses of the prime award. This contract  incorporates one or more clauses by reference, with the same force and effect as if they were  given in full text. Where “flow-down” to the contractor is appropriate and applicable,  references to “USAID” or ”Department of State” shall be interpreted to mean “IRI”,  “Recipient” to mean “Contractor”, and “Subrecipient” to mean “lower-tier subrecipients”.  Included by reference are 2 C.F.R. 200 and USAID Standard Provisions for Non-US Non 

governmental Organizations/US Department of State Standard Terms and Conditions. 

PR4181 IFB MENA2024T04o – Field Office Health Insurance