| (a) As provided by §533.0035 of the Texas Government
Code, the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) awards
a contract under Chapter 533 of the Texas Government Code to a managed
care organization (MCO) only if the MCO has been certified by HHSC
as reasonably able to fulfill the terms of the contract, including
all requirements of applicable federal and state law.
(b) HHSC determines whether to certify an MCO following
the evaluation of the proposals submitted in response to a solicitation.
Certification and the certification determination process described
in this section do not impact an MCO's final score in the evaluation,
but failure to obtain certification results in no further consideration
of the MCO for the contract award.
(c) In its certification determination, HHSC may review:
(1) materials submitted by the MCO in response to the
solicitation;
(2) materials related to the MCO's past performance
in any state, including materials required to be monitored by a state's
managed care program under 42 C.F.R. §438.66(c); and
(3) any additional information and assurances requested
by HHSC from the MCO for purposes of the certification determination.
(d) HHSC provides notice of approval or denial of certification
by electronic mail to an MCO. A notice of denial sets forth the reasons
for the denial of certification. If an MCO is denied certification,
the MCO may appeal the denial by submitting an appeal to the solicitation's
sole point of contact no later than 10 business days after the date
HHSC transmits the notice of denial of certification.
(e) An appeal must specifically address the reasons
for the denial of the certification as stated in the notice of denial
and precisely state the argument, authorities, and evidence the MCO
offers in support of its appeal.
(f) To resolve an appeal, HHSC:
(1) dismisses the appeal as untimely;
(2) upholds the denial of certification; or
(3) reverses the denial of certification and certifies
the MCO as reasonably able to fulfill the terms of the contract, including
all requirements of applicable federal and state law.
(g) After the expiration of the appeal period and the
resolution of any pending appeals, MCOs that obtained the required
certification will proceed to the next phase of the contract award
process.
(h) HHSC's determination whether to certify that an
MCO is reasonably able to fulfill the terms of a contract is not a
contested case proceeding under the Texas Administrative Procedure
Act, Texas Government Code, Chapter 2001.
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