Bidding documents are treated as confidential documents prior to the official date of release. However, they should be ready for issuance on the first day of advertisement. While the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of Republic Act (RA) 9184 allows a procurement process of 60 calendar days from the date of advertisement up to the bid opening date, the organization has the flexibility to determine a shorter period. In the case of Northern Samar's hospital management services, the duration is proposed to be shortened from 60 days to about 50 days given the organization's ability to expedite the eligibility screening activity.
For monitoring purposes, the BAC secretariat should keep a record of all those who purchased or were issued bidding documents. This record helps the end user and the BAC estimate the number of prospective bidders, and to ascertain the likelihood of a failed invitation in the event of a non-response.