School District 270
(Official Publication)
PURPOSE OF REQUEST FOR SERVICES
Hopkins Public Schools is seeking proposals from benefits consultants to provide highly professional and proactive employee benefit consulting services related to the School Districts selection and management of employee benefit programs related to health, dental, life and long-term disability insurance plans and ancillary products including but not limited to HRA/VEBA and flexible spending accounts.
The required employee benefit consulting services include the full range of services related to the selection, design, implementation, maintenance, communication analysis and strategic improvement of the School Districts health and wellness group benefits that are consistent with and directly support the School Districts mission, goals, and priorities.
The School District currently offers self-insured health and dental programs and fully-insured long-term disability and life insurance to its employees (qualifications apply). Approximately 1346 employees and retirees have contracts covering approximately 1028 eligible members. The types of professional services requested in this Request for Proposal (RFP) are detailed in the Scope of Services.
SCOPE OF SERVICES
The selected consultant/broker will be expected to work in close partnership with the School Districts administration and human resource team to assist primarily with, but not limited to, annual insurance renewals, legal and tax advice related to employee benefits, benefit plan design, cost containment, wellness, COBRA/HIPAA and other compliance issues, regional and national benefits comparisons, communication to employees regarding benefits, and enrollment processing.
Benefits Consulting:
1. Provide comprehensive claims utilization analysis for the School Districts health and dental programs, including assistance with annual reconciliation of plan reserves.
2. Deliver expert advice regarding plan designs and programs based on industry trends, claims utilization and cost-containment strategies;
3. Conduct negotiations with third-party administrators, insurance providers and other employee benefit providers to ensure both quality and efficiency of employee benefit programs;
4. Ensure legal and tax-related compliance with all employee benefit programs;
5. Ensure plan documents accurately reflect the School District offered program designs;
6. Assist in resolving employee benefit concerns by facilitating communication between employees, vendors and the School District;
7. Provide appropriate education, training, and analytics to the School Districts insurance committee to ensure informed and intelligent decision making regarding plan design and utilization;
8. Provide regular updates, advice, and best industry practices information to the School District insurance committee to ensure successful administration of the School District self-funded health and dental programs;
9. Provide assistance with the Affordable Care Act (ACA) regulations, updates, fees, compliance, tracking, and training.
10. Provide actuarial assistance as it relates to the evaluation and impact of plan design changes.
Administrative Services:
1. Provide COBRA and retiree administration in accordance with applicable laws.
2. Provide HIPPA guidance and policy assistance.
3. Engage employees in member surveys as necessary to assess employee needs and acceptance of plans.
4. Provide administration for Medicare Part D compliance in accordance with applicable laws.
5. Provide administration and oversight for employee and family member assistance services to answer benefit questions.
6. Serve as a point of contact for District HR staff when information or assistance as needed.
ORGANIZATIONAL BACKGROUND/INTRODUCTION
Hopkins Public Schools serves more than 6,500 students from the cities of Hopkins, Minnetonka, Edina, Eden Prairie, St. Louis Park, Golden Valley and Plymouth. Our schools and programs include: six elementary schools; a Chinese immersion elementary school; two middle schools; one high school; a transition program; a transportation garage, the District Education Center, early childhood, adult education, and community education.
The superintendent and district administration are headquartered in the District Education Center at 1001 Highway 7 Hopkins, MN. Additional information about the School District can be found on the School Districts web site at www.hopkinsschools.org
SUBMISSION OF PROPOSALS
1. Sealed proposals must be submitted to:
Nik Lightfoot
Assistant Superintendent
Hopkins Public Schools
1001 Highway 7
Hopkins, MN 55305
952.988.4028
On or before 10:00 a.m., July 14, 2015
Proposals not received by the deadline will be late and ineligible for consideration.
2. Three (3) copies of the proposal must be submitted in a sealed envelope plainly marked Proposal for Employee Benefit & Administration Consultant for the Hopkins Public Schools with the name of your firm and address clearly identified.
3. A proposal, once delivered in the formal custody of the School District, may not be withdrawn. Once documents have been received by the School District, all documents become the property of the School District. When documents are opened, they become public information and any restrictions put upon the School District regarding the sharing of information or duplicating copies after the opening may be grounds to reject the proposal.
4. Any representative who approaches any insurance company or third party administrator regarding the Hopkins Public Schools account without prior written approval from the School District may be disqualified from this process.
REQUIREMENTS
The following minimal conditions must be met at a minimum and addressed in proposals:
1. The vendor must have sufficient background, credentials, knowledge, and experience to provide consultation regarding a complete employee benefit program for the services proposed.
2. The proposals submitted in response to this request will be considered the only submission. Revised proposals will not be allowed after the proposal return date unless requested by the School District.
3. The School District reserves the right to negotiate terms with vendors prior to recommending the successful proposal or finalizing contract terms.
4. The School District reserves the right to negotiate plan amendments and/or modifications to the financial or administrative arrangement with the company selected to administer the plan. The School District also reserves the right to waive minor irregularities, accept or reject any proposal wholly or in part, or call for new proposals.
5. All proposals must be valid for six months after the date of opening.
6. All proposals must answer or address all applicable sections and subsections as outlined.
7. All proposals become property of Hopkins Public Schools.
8. All proposals must include provisions ensuring compliance with federal, state and local laws, ordinances, rules, regulations or executive orders pertaining to unlawful discrimination on account of race, color, creed, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, disability or age.
PROPOSAL FORMAT
Proposals shall be submitted in the following format and must include the following information.
1. General Information
a. Provide the legal name of your firm, its address, telephone number, fax number and company internet web address. If different, provide the address of each of the locations providing services.
b. Provide the name, title, mailing address, telephone number, fax number and e-mail address of the primary contact for all matters relating to your proposal.
c. Provide a brief history of your firm, including years in the benefits consulting business, benefits administration services, growth of business accounts retention and anything that makes your company unique. Include your companys customer service philosophy and management style. Include a description of the locations in which your firm operates and the number of employees.
d. Please describe your vision of the relationship with Hopkins Public Schools in being a consultant for the School District.
e. Provide the name and qualifications of the proposed account manager for Hopkins Public Schools. Describe this persons experience serving as consultant to organizations similar in size and needs as the Hopkins Public Schools and the number of accounts he/she oversees.
f. Identify and describe the roles and qualifications of any additional staff members or sub-contracted (affiliate) firm who will be providing the requested services to the Hopkins Public Schools.
g. Confirm that you are a licensed to provide the requested services in the state of Minnesota. Provide documentation.
h. Confirm that you serve as an independent consultant, and are not affiliated with any insurance company, third party administrative agency or provider network.
i. Please describe your working relationship with health insurance carriers and/or third party administrators.
ii. Are there any existing or potential relationships between your firm and insurance carriers and/or vendors who may be considered by the School District that could lessen your independence and objectivity because of a perceived or actual conflict of interest?
iii. Include an itemized calculation of the number of self-funded and fully insured accounts your firm currently has with all providers, including, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, HealthPartners, Medica, PreferredOne, PEIP. Also, include the percentage of your firms health insurance revenue generated in the past year by your contracts with each of these providers.
Consultant/broker will be required to enter into a contract which will create a fiduciary relationship with the District.
2. Benefits Consulting Services
a. Describe your firms expertise and experience in the following:
i. Self-funded benefit plan administration and vendor reinsurance negotiations
ii. Life and long-term disability insurance programs and negotiations
iii. Health reimbursement account, health savings account and flexible spending account establishment and management
iv. Employee wellness programming and support
b. Identify the number of accounts your firm currently has in self-funded health insurance programs.
c. Identify the number of accounts your firm currently has in fully insured health insurance programs.
d. Detail the scope of services your firm would offer and how your firm would accomplish the work described.
e. Describe your firms methodology for providing benefit consulting services for self-funded health and dental programs as follows:
i. Narrative description of services, processes and key interactions.
ii. Timetable of event
iii. Information analysis services and reporting timelines. Include sample documents used in this process.
f. Outline your ability to provide expertise and experience in the areas of health benefit plan analysis and design. Include examples of innovations or changes you have recommended and implemented which have mitigated increases in medical benefit costs.
g. Describe any communication strategies you use in supporting a comprehensive employee benefit program and any extra services your firm would provide to educate and train employees in making informed benefit decisions. Provide examples.
h. Please describe to what extent your firm is willing to be involved in resolving problems with claims, between employees, vendors and the School District.
i. Describe any other relevant information concerning your firms expertise which you believe would be of interest to the Hopkins Public Schools in understanding the level of services you can provide.
j. Please indicate any other services, capabilities, designations or experience that differentiate your organization from competition.
k. Please describe your ability to translate data and complex concepts for laypersons.
3. Benefits Administration Services
a. Describe how your firm (or affiliate) would conduct benefits administration for Hopkins Public Schools.
b. Describe your firms (or affiliates) expertise and experience in benefits administration
i. Provide the number of benefits administration accounts your firm manages
c. Describe how your firm would manage the following services (include samples if appropriate):
i. COBRA and retiree administration.
ii. HIPAA administration:
1. Initial HIPAA notice to all full time employees
2. Termination HIPAA certificate to all terminating employees
iii. Annual personalized employee benefits statements administration
iv. Member survey administration:
1. Benefits surveys created, dispersed, collected & summarized outlining employees needs and acceptance levels
vi. Medicare Part D compliance in accordance with applicable laws.
v. Help call line administration:
1. Direct-line employee & family inquiry assistance services to answer benefits questions.
vi. Reconciliation of financial and plan participation data.
d. Describe any other relevant information concerning your firms (or affiliates) expertise which you believe would be of interest to the Hopkins Public Schools in understanding the level of benefit administrative services you can provide.
e. Please indicate any other services, capabilities, designations or experience that differentiate your organization from competition.
4. References
List two current clients similar to Hopkins Public Schools for whom you provide coordinated consulting services related to health, dental, Life, LTD plans and ancillary benefits. For each client, the list must specify the type of work performed by your firm, the size of the clients group and the period of time retained as a client. For each client, include the name, title, address, email address, and phone number of a contact person who Hopkins Public Schools may contact as a reference.
5. Consultant Compensation
The School District wishes to compensate the selected consultant on a fixed fee basis charged to the health plan. Please provide your fee structure to deliver the proposed services, now and in the future. Please note that the School District will require complete disclosure of any and all fees, commissions, contingent commissions, overrides, or bonuses your firm receives each year as a result of your firms work on the bonus-paying organizations behalf.
6. Consultant Agreement
Please attach a copy of a sample consultant agreement with your firm.
7. Attachments
Attach any additional documents or examples of work product that you believe support your consideration in this RFP.
CONSIDERATION OF PROPOSALS
The School District may choose to award a contract based upon the initial proposals received without discussion of such proposals with the vendor. Accordingly, each initial proposal should be submitted with the most favorable price and service standpoint. The School District reserves the right to waive any irregularities in proposals and to make all decisions in the best interest of the School District. The School District may negotiate a contract with any vendor. The School District may interview any vendor. All information and material returned with proposals shall become part of any contract, which results from this proposal.
The School District reserves the right to reject any or all proposals. The School District also reserves the right to exercise its discretion and be the sole judge of the proposal. The School District is not liable for any costs incurred by Consultant prior to the issuance of a contract and receipt of all necessary approvals.
Three (3) copies of the proposal shall be submitted with the name and telephone number of the principal person provided.
Consultant finalist selected for an evaluation prior to final selection may be required to make an oral presentation of their proposal to the School District. Such presentations provide an opportunity for the potential consultant to clarify the proposal to ensure mutual understanding.
PROPOSAL EVALUATION
Proposals will be evaluated by the School District administration.
The successful selection of a consultant/broker will be based on the following criteria (not necessarily in order of importance):
1. Expertise and experience in providing consultation services
2. Qualifications of personnel in the area of the described employee benefit programs described
3. References from public sector entities and clients which are comparable to the School District
4. Ability to respond efficiently to requests for services
5. Quality of the proposal, responsiveness and adequacy of information provided
6. Scope of services offered
7. Demonstrated ability to work with, develop relationship with, and access to major employee benefit providers
8. Fee/payment structure to service this account
9. Value added services (i.e., training, professional development, other services)
10. Other considerations as identified by the School District in the review of consultant proposals.
Due care and diligence have been used in the preparation of this information; and it is believed to be substantially correct. The responsibility for determining the full extent of the exposure and verification of all information presented herein shall rest solely upon the proposer. Please direct all questions regarding the RFP to Nik Lightfoot, Assistant Superintendent via phone at 952.988.4028 or via email at nik.lightfoot@hopkinsschools.org.
RFP TENTATIVE TIME SCHEDULE
Announcement of RFP: June 23, 2015
Proposals due on or before: 10 a.m. on Tuesday, July 14, 2015
Proposals reviewed including interviews as determined: Wednesday July 15-August 6, 2015
Identification of recommended consultant: August 7, 2015
Consultant recommended to Board of Education for approval: September 3, 2015
*Modification to the review of proposals timeline may occur, depending on the availability of insurance committee members over the summer months.
PREPARATION COSTS
The School District is not responsible for any costs associated with the preparation or submittal of this RFP.
QUESTIONS
All questions shall reference 2015 RFP for Employee Benefit & Administrative Consulting Services and be directed to Nik Lightfoot, Assistant Superintendent via phone at 952.988.4028 or via email at nik.lightfoot@hopkinsschools.org.
EEO STATEMENT
The School District is committed to the policy that all persons shall have equal access to its programs, facilities, and employment without regard to race, color, creed, religion, national origin, gender, age, marital status, disability, public assistance status, veteran status or sexual orientation.
CONFIDENTIALITY
All documents, materials and information supplied by and to the School District are subject to the Minnesota government data practices act. That act provides that all data collected, created, received, maintained or disseminated by the School District shall be public unless otherwise classified and protected from disclosure by law. By delivering information to the School District, the respondent represents that it has reviewed, to the extent it deems appropriate, and understands the provisions of the act. The respondent further acknowledges that the School District has no right to withhold disclosure of public data. All data provided by the respondent deemed, CONFIDENTIAL shall be so marked. If a request of disclosure of such document is made, the School District will notify the respondent of such request. The School District does not undertake to defend any action to require the disclosure of such information.
PROPOSAL COMPLETION
The School District requires that all responses include the required information. All proposals must be signed and submitted by an authorized representative of the firm.
REJECTION
The School District reserves the right to reject any and all proposals if the information is incomplete and does not address all the required items. Unsigned and late proposals will not be considered.
NEGOTIATION
The School District reserves the right to negotiate the proposal with the top finalist. This may require interviews, site visits and facility tours as part of the negotiation process. In addition, the School District reserves the right to negotiate modifications to the proposal with a single respondent without obligation to negotiate similar modifications with other respondents.
PROPOSAL AWARD
Letters will be sent to all other respondents after the successful consultant has been notified.
6/25/15, 3SS4, 3SP2, RFP
Benefit Consulting Svcs, 408068