Sparksoft Corporation (RFP-CMS-220988)

B-420944.4 Jun 02, 2023 Jump To VIEW DECISION DOWNLOADS RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights Sparksoft Corporation, a woman-owned small business, of Columbia, Maryland, protests the issuance of a task order to RELI Group, Inc., a historically underutilized business zone (HUBZone) small business, of Catonsville, Maryland, by the Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). The agency issued the task order under task order request for proposal (TORP) No. RFP-CMS-220988, for the performance of the agency's Multidimensional Information Data Analytics System (MIDAS) requirement. The protester argues that the agency unreasonably evaluated the protester's and awardee's oral presentations and the awardee's corporate experience, and that the award decision was inconsistent with the solicitation's award criteria. We deny the protest. View Decision DOCUMENT FOR PUBLIC RELEASE The decision issued on the date below was subject to a GAO Protective Order. This redacted version has been approved for public release. Decision Matter of: Sparksoft Corporation File: B-420944.4 Date: June 2, 2023 David B. Dixon, Esq., Toghrul Shukurlu, Esq., and Robert Starling, Esq., Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP, for the protester. John R. Prairie, Esq., J. Ryan Frazee, Esq., and Lisa M. Rechden, Esq., Wiley Rein LLP, for RELI Group, Inc., the intervenor. Ethan S. Chae, Esq., William Shim, Esq., David Lank, Esq., and Douglas Kornreich, Esq., Department of Health and Human Services, for the agency. Jonathan L. Kang, Esq., and John Sorrenti, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision. DIGEST 1. Protest challenging the evaluation of the awardee’s proposal under the oral presentation and corporate experience factors is denied were the agency’s evaluation, following corrective action in response to a decision by our Office sustaining an earlier protest, was reasonable and consistent with the terms of the solicitation. 2. Protest challenging an award decision based on the selection of a lower technically rated, lower-priced proposal over a higher technically rated, higher-priced proposal is denied where the decision was consistent with the terms of the solicitation, and where the agency reasonably explained the rationale for the award. DECISION Sparksoft Corporation, a woman-owned small business, of Columbia, Maryland, protests the issuance of a task order to RELI Group, Inc., a historically underutilized business zone (HUBZone) small business, of Catonsville, Maryland, by the Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). The agency issued the task order under task order request for proposal (TORP) No. RFP-CMS-220988, for the performance of the agency’s Multidimensional Information Data Analytics System (MIDAS) requirement. The protester argues that the agency unreasonably evaluated the protester’s and awardee’s oral presentations and the awardee’s corporate experience, and that the award decision was inconsistent with the solicitation’s award criteria. We deny the protest. BACKGROUND CMS issued the solicitation on April 25, 2022, seeking proposals to “operate, maintain, and provide development services” for MIDAS, which supports the agency’s Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight (CCIIO). Agency Report (AR), Tab 1, Conformed TORP at 1, 64.[1] The CCIIO “assists millions of Americans in obtaining affordable health insurance and enables more employers to offer cost-effective insurance coverage to their employees.” Id. at 65. MIDAS, in turn, “provides mission-critical functionality that CCIIO requires to implement and enforce statutory requirements for issuers.” Id. MIDAS functions supported by the contractor will include “a data repository and analytics solution to support a cloud-based data platform for capturing, sharing, aggregating, and analyzing health insurance and related information to support improvements in decision making, business practices, and services to states and federal agencies.” Id. The contractor will be required to provide services “to curate and integrate data from multiple data and operational source systems into a single information data platform.” Id. at 64. Sparksoft is the incumbent contractor for the MIDAS requirements. Protest at 3. The competition was limited to firms[2] that hold one of the agency’s multiple‑award IDIQ contracts, known as Strategic Partners Acquisition Readiness Contracts (SPARC), and was conducted under the provisions of Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) subpart 16.5. TORP at 45. The competition was further limited to SPARC contract holders that were either HUBZone firms or women-owned small business firms. Id. The TORP anticipated issuance of a task order with fixed-price line items for a 1-year base period and four 1-year options. Id.