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Status Report on Major Crown/Transformational Projects

Description

Health Information and Claims Processing Services (HICPS) Major Crown Project.

HICPS is the key delivery mechanism for the payment of pharmacy, medical supplies and equipment, and dental benefits under Health Canada's Non-Insured Health Benefits (NIHB) Program.

The HICPS Project was established to conduct a competitive procurement to replace the former HICPS contract, to manage the implementation of the new service contract and ensure a smooth transition from the former incumbent to the new contractor.

Project Phase

Project Close-Out Phase: The HICPS Major Crown Project entered the project close-out phase upon implementation of the new Health Information and Claims Processing Services into production on December 1, 2009. The system continues to be fully operational as a satisfactory service.

Overview: HICPS supports the delivery of much-needed health benefits for over 846,000 eligible First Nations and Inuit clients. Express Scripts C Canada commenced operations in December 2009 with implementation of the new HICPS system. Transition between the previous claims processor and the new Contractor was managed without major impact to Non-Insured Health Benefits' First Nation and Inuit Clients.

Leading and Participating Departments and Agencies


Lead Department Health Canada
Contracting Authority Public Works and Government Services Canada
Participating Departments Indian and Northern Affairs Canada

Prime and Major Subcontractor(s)


Prime Contractor Express Scripts Canada (ESIC), Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
Major Subcontractor(s) Not in RPP 2010-2011

Major Milestones


Major Milestone Date
Initial meetings with Contractor, coordination of implementation phase project plan Contract Award (December 4, 2007 through January 2008)
Business Requirements Gathering and Design February 2008 to August 2008
HICPS Development September 2008 to April 2009
HICPS Testing and Acceptance May to September 2009
Documentation, Simulations, Validation, Data Conversion and Training September 2009 to November 2009
HICPS Implementation (ESIC officially takes over real-time service provision) December 6, 2009
Project Close-Out Phase. Includes:
  • Finalization of System fixes and adjustments;
  • Refinement of some services; and,
  • Evaluation of the HICPS Project and lessons learned.
December 2010 to December 2011

Project Outcomes

The Implementation Phase of the HICPS project was concluded on time and on budget in December 2009. All steps were taken to ensure a seamless transition to Non-Insured Health Benefits clients. Some system adjustments, service refinements and enrolment of providers continued after system implementation. However, the new HICPS system has successfully processed pharmacy, dental, and MS&E benefits for First Nation and Inuit clients since the implementation date.

The Project has now entered the Close-Out Phase and an evaluation is being completed of the HICPS project and lessons learned. The evaluation is scheduled to be completed by December 2011.

The project schedule and budget are consistent with the amount granted by the project authorities.

Progress Report and Explanations of Variances

HICPS was implemented on December 6, 2009 and transition completed between the two service contracts. ;

For fiscal 2010-11, the focus of this initiative has been on refinement of the services and the system project evaluation.

Industrial Benefits

The Industrial Regional Benefits (IRB) model was modified to focus on benefiting the Aboriginal economic community, rather than a specific industry or region of Canada, resulting in an Aboriginal benefit requirement (ABR) which is unique to the HICPS Project.

The development of the ABR approach for the HICPS Project was informed by industry feedback through two Requests for Information (RFI) consultation processes, and approved by Treasury Board. As HICPS Prime Contractor, Express Scripts Canada is required to ensure a mandatory and substantial Aboriginal benefits requirement representing direct or indirect benefits to Aboriginal businesses or individuals.