It’s a Wrap! Health Care District issues RFP for a new medical practice

— from Susan McBain, Orcas Issues reporter —

After two years of operations, observations, research, and professional and public input, the commissioners of the Orcas Island Health Care District approved a Request for Proposal (RFP) describing in detail the medical system and services they would like to see on Orcas Island. Release of the RFP on May 11 is the first step in finding a partner to reshape the delivery of the island’s health care.

The RFP describes the District’s desired model of service, “a single practice encompassing all health care providers on this island.” It includes descriptions of the District, its population, and current service providers; a detailed list of desired services and characteristics for the proposed practice; and descriptions of the information required in proposers’ responses. Interested organizations are asked describe the organization structure, staffing, facilities, financing, and patient engagement they propose for the new practice. Also, to determine if the proposer is “philosophically aligned with the District,” the RFP asks that proposers “demonstrate the following characteristics:

• A culture of quality and accountability
• A commitment to transparency in dealing with all its constituencies
• A history of innovation in identifying and solving the health care needs of the populations served.”

The complete RFP, including three requirements documents and five documents with additional information for proposers, is available at this link. Notice of the RFP’s publication will be sent to UW Medicine, Orcas Family Health Center, Island Hospital, PeaceHealth Peace Island Medical Center, and others who express interest or seem like viable candidates. The proposed timeline has a due date of June 19 for responses and a contract award date of August 4; however, changes are possible depending on impacts of COVID-19. The opening date of the restructured clinic is expected to be in the first quarter of 2021.

After approving the motion to issue the RFP, the commissioners and Superintendent Anne Presson allowed themselves to exchange broad smiles, and there was even one fist pump.

In the ongoing saga of building repairs, the District has received three bids for replacing the roof of the clinic building, all “similar and reasonable,” according to Commissioner Richard Fralick. The RFP requested each bidder to estimate costs for two options, one for the roof without insulation and the other including insulation and conditioning of the attic space. An RFP for the HVAC system was just released, and bids are due May 29. Final decision will await receipt of those bids, so that costs of the entire package of repairs are available to the board.

Both the Orcas Family Health Center (OFHC) and the Orcas UW Neighborhood Clinic (UWNC) reported that visits to their clinics remained at about 50% of last year’s levels. Both continue to do telehealth
visits and to see patients in the clinic when necessary. They will begin adding more in-person visits to their schedules. While OFHC and the larger UWNC organization were each approved for COVID-related loans, it’s unclear how UWNC will distribute those funds across all of its clinics. UW Medicine reported that its final 2020–2021 budget (July 2020–June 2021) will likely not be finalized until August of this year, which may affect its ability to respond to the medical provider RFP.

The District’s next regular meeting will be May 19 at 5 p.m. via Zoom. The Zoom link will be available on the Meetings Calendar page; to attend, click the May 19 “OIHCD Regular Board Meeting” link, then click the Zoom link. If you have not used Zoom before, the app will automatically download before opening.