Period of Performance: September 15, 2022 to September 14, 2029.

L&M currently holds an indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to conduct qualitative and quantitative research to support the implementation and assessment of CMS communication efforts. 

Recent task order contracts awarded under this IDIQ include:

• “Consumer Research on Communicating Coverage, Choice and Quality.” The contract includes two main tasks around Beneficiary Use of Quality Information in Decision-Making and Enhancing Surveys of Patient Experience and Patient-Reported Outcomes, through environmental scans and literature reviews; interviews with CMS leadership, technical leads, or external experts; and interviews with consumers. The results of the research will be used to enhance patient experience and patient-reported outcomes surveys.

• “Consumer Research to Improve Health Insurance Marketplace Experience, Choice, and Decision-Making.” The contract includes consumer and usability testing of wireframes, Web tool prototypes, and live website for the Health Insurance Marketplace (www.HealthCare.gov); testing of outreach and educational materials; formative research with potential users of HealthCare.gov; survey analyses; and message, terminology, concept, and creative testing to inform the development of outreach and education strategies. The results of the research will inform a comprehensive synthesis and recommendations report to assist CMS in developing the tools on the Marketplace.

• "Research to Support Medicare Decision-Making Tools and Information." The contract provides qualitative research support to provide CMS with the consumer perspectives needed to inform efforts to develop and improve Medicare decision support resources. This research involves usability testing; in-depth interviews, focus groups, small group discussions, and dyads/triads; online forums and panels; literature reviews, environmental scans, and desk audits; competitive analysis of industry practices and service blueprints; and secondary analysis of previous user research studies.

• "Research to Support Medicare Innovations Communication." To help address the unique challenges of the Open Enrollment Period (OEP) campaign and empower beneficiaries to feel confident in reviewing and comparing their options, the contract informs the development of effective messages and materials to encourage beneficiaries to review and compare their options through quantitative and mixed methods research to provide CMS with the consumer perspectives on a variety of Medicare topics.