Request for Proposals: Independent Evaluator for Just In Reach Pay for Success - Due 10/28

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS: INDEPENDENT EVALUATOR FOR JIR PFS (DUE 10/28)

CSH and the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services (DHS), in partnership with the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department (LASD) and the County CEO’s Office, are launching the first Pay for Success (PFS) initiative in the County – JIR PFS. With support from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Department of Justice (DOJ) Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) Demonstration initiative, CSH is seeking a qualified independent evaluator for JIR PFS.

Over a five year period, JIR PFS will create 300 supportive housing “slots” for homeless, frequently incarcerated individuals in LA County Jail. The initiative will target the most vulnerable individuals in LA County jails – high cost users of public systems who are homeless and frequently incarcerated – and connect them with supportive housing and comprehensive wrap-around supportive services. JIR PFS’s program design includes in-reach supportive services, coordinated discharge, interim and permanent supportive housing placement, move-in assistance, and ongoing case management for individuals who are homeless and within the LA County criminal justice system. JIR service providers will receive referrals from a variety of touch points within the LA County criminal justice systems, including but not limited to the jail mental health clinicians, jail medical staff, and alternative sentencing courts.

JIR PFS will be evaluated for two purposes: (1) verifying outcomes tied to payments made to investors (i.e., housing stability and recidivism) and (2) estimating the broader impact of JIR PFS on individuals’ use of a spectrum of publicly-funded services. The appropriate subcontractor will be able to assist with various items, including:

• Design an evaluation methodology
• Identify all data inputs required to track
• Determine outcome measures for the PFS project
• Work with the PFS intermediary (CSH) to verify calculations about the amount of money to be paid back to investors based on the number of successful outcomes, per agreements with investors
• Participate in quarterly Steering Committee and occasional monthly Operating Committee meetings
• Develop a timeline and plan for data collection and reporting out

The subcontractor’s work will mainly comprise of the following:

Evaluation Design
The subcontractor and CSH will work closely together to ensure that the evaluation design is compatible with the program design and the plan for service delivery. The evaluation will answer the following questions:

1. Were housing stability and recidivism performance goals sufficiently met to trigger payments to investors?
2. Does supportive housing increase housing stability measures while decreasing the utilization of high-cost public services?

Broader Impact Analysis
The subcontractor will conduct a broader impact analysis of the impact of PSH on the utilization of a spectrum of publically funded health, public health, mental health, social, and criminal justice services and the associated costs of those services. Though the findings will not be tied to success measures and payments, this broader analysis will determine whether the results of the intervention result in significant costs savings. 

Ensuring Data Security
The subcontractor will work with CSH to ensure proper data sharing and storing procedures. Prior to commencing the evaluation, the subcontractor will be responsible for developing a process to match service records for individuals across different department datasets without identifying the individual personal records or information. The subcontractor will also be responsible for ensuring safe transfer of information between various partners.

Subcontractor and CSH coordination
The subcontractor and CSH will work closely together to merge the expertise of each organization in order to ensure that the evaluation is conducted in the most comprehensive, complete, and secure manner possible. Coordination will occur via in-person meetings, e-mail, and phone.

Milestones and Deliverables: 

• The selected evaluator will provide an evaluation plan that includes a methodological approach to evaluating the Just in Reach Pay for Success project, and a data collection plan that will include a description of procedures to collect the data necessary for evaluation of the project.
• The selected evaluator will conduct 7 data pulls that combine LASD, HMIS data, and DHS administrative data (July 2018 to July 2021) for the purposes of determining the amount of money to be paid back to investors.
• The selected evaluator will conduct 2 data pulls from the Enterprise Linkage Project:
  • The first data pull will occur two years into the project (July 1, 2019). Potential deliverables from first data pull include:
    1. Description of program participants, their pre-program utilization rates and costs (no comparison group analyses)
    2. Description of “early” findings using subsample of 150 participants that have been enrolled more than 12 months; examine pre- and post-housing service utilization and costs for the 150 participants that have been enrolled at least 12 months
    3. Compare 150 participants to a comparison group on service utilization and costs
• • The second data pull will occur four years into the project (July 1, 2021) for the purposes of conducting the broader impact analysis detailed above. Potential deliverables from the second data pull include:
    1. Examine service utilization and costs for 300 treatment individuals (and a comparison group) from 24 months pre-program to July 2021
  • Attend quarterly Steering Committee and occasional monthly Operating Committee meetings and prepare presentations/materials for investors and other stakeholders.

Funding Available:
An amount not to exceed $400,000 is available for this project.

Application Process:
In order for consideration to become a subcontractor and participate in this work, we will need you to complete and return the below application and forms no later than Friday, October 28, 2016.

You may include up to 6 staff members in the application. The following forms are included:

• Attachment A: Application Letter
• Attachment B: Subcontractor Information and Budget (including billing rates)
• Attachment C: Financial and Administrative Requirements

All of the application information and forms must be completed and submitted to Tom Haskin (tom.haskin@csh.org) no later than Friday, October 28, 2016 in order to be considered. This information includes proposed billing rates, proposed project budget information, completed copies of the forms referenced above, resumes for up to six proposed staff members, and a narrative description (limited to 5 pages) of your organization's core competencies and accomplishments.

Evaluation:
CSH will evaluate applications utilizing the following criteria and will select the highest-scoring valid proposal: 

• Demonstrated successful performance of substantially similar work (up to 20 points);
• Relevant project work, including Pay for Success project work (up to 25 points);
• Experience and expertise, including 1) experience with the Enterprise Linkages Project (ELP) integrated data system in Los Angeles County, 2) familiarity with evaluating homeless programs and supportive housing projects, and
• expertise in cross-system data matching to measure service utilization for homeless clients (up to 25 points);
• Years of relevant experience (up to 10 points);
• Rate reasonableness and overall cost of services (up to 10 points); and
• Proximity to and knowledge of Los Angeles (up to 10 points)

We will contact you regarding the determination of adding you as a CSH subcontractor. Please note that CSH requires subcontractors, including individuals and sole proprietors, to carry workers' compensation insurance while performing work under a CSH subcontract.

If you have any questions, please feel free to e-mail Danielle Wildkress at Danielle.Wildkress@csh.org.