Amendment 0001_36C24126Q0734.pdf

Amendment No.: 0001 Solicitation No.: 36C24126Q0734 Date: August 24, 2026

Purpose of Amendment

The purpose of this amendment is to provide responses to questions submitted regarding the solicitation. As a result of these questions and responses, the response due date remains unchanged.

1. Question: Wood Destroying Insects, Bed Bugs, Birds, etc. We are going to need clarification of expectations around these. Are these covered during regular services? We typically would create a 1x service to treat for bedbugs/wildlife.

Answer: If it is a treatment for bed bugs conducted during the regular Tuesday/Thursday treatments, then it is expected to be included in the regular pricing. We get about 1-3 confirmed bed bug exposures in an exam room or psychiatric treatment area per year historically. We also historically request 3-5 prophylactic treatments for bed bugs per year if we find out that a patient has confirmed bed bugs in living space outside of the facility and visited the facility for treatment. If it’s requested separate of the regular Tuesday/Thursday treatment, then it would constitute a separate bill outside of regular services and would be covered under the hourly after hours rate.

We are also constantly working with staff to bring that number down as most of the bed bug reports are from patients that are known to have them and can be isolated and facility exposure minimized if their condition is known.

2. Question: Is there an allotment for equipment? As in, can we charge to replace equipment/install future equipment?

Answer: No, we are not purchasing pest control equipment for the facility. All of the equipment is the whole responsibility of the contractor as stated in the SOW.

3. Question: During evaluation and technical review due to public safety concerns regarding pesticide applications and managing public health pests while applying pesticides during IPM Pest Management services as outlined in the Statement of Work, will the government require Prime Contractors to have direct pest industry experience and maintain specific pesticide General Liability insurance coverage that includes pesticide pollution coverage as per the National Pest Management Association Standard of Care and Best Practices guidelines as well as state requirements? This requirement aligns with VHA Directive 1850.02 (Pest Management Operations) and VAAM Appendix M815-A (Department of Veterans Affairs Source Selection Guide), which prohibit subcontractors from qualifying Prime Contractors that lack pest industry experience and/or pesticide-related insurance.

Answer: Yes, all state, federal, and VHA requirements will be followed at all times and copy of all required insurance, and licensing is required to be maintained on hand at the VA Bedford HCS facility in the Pest Management Binder as stated in the SOW. Maintaining this information within the Pest Management binder is also a Tracked Performance Standard for this contract.

4. Question: Has any part of the Statement of Work (SOW) changed in this solicitation compared to the last awarded contract? If so, what changed or was added?

Answer: There were items added to clarify expectations for what is covered under regular services, what is covered under hourly rates, and that items are not combined as this would constitute double billing/charging.

5. Question: Has the government issued any CURE or Notice of Correction for pest control services over the past 12 months at any locations?

Answer: That information should not be disclosed to outside parties.

6. Question: Can the government clarify that air screens are expected as part of the all inclusive and included in the fixed pricing which is not within industry practices and/or government contracting for IPM Pest Management Services?

Answer: The only air screens that I am aware of at the facility are for keeping heating/cooling inside the buildings and fall under the HVAC/Engineering Service which are not part of this contract.

7. Question: Can the government confirm the number of exterior rodent bait stations that are present?

Answer: The number can sometimes adjust due to activity. The facility has 6 permanent exterior bait stations. That number is based on the current IPM for the facility that can change upon IPM review with the new contractor. There are also 4 temporary ones that were placed a month or so ago to monitor activity in one building. Those 4 will probably be removed upon IPM review with the new contract.

8. Question: Will the government require exterior rodent bait stations to be provided by the contractor upon award?

Answer: Yes, it is part of the facility treatment plan to be placed outside the areas that have a high probability of rodent activity and used to monitor influxes of activity.

9. Question: Can the government confirm the number of fly lights that are present?

Answer: There are 12 fly lights currently installed. Some of those are seasonal for staff with allergic reactions to stinging insects.

10. Question: Will the government require fly lights to be provided by the contractor upon award?

Answer: That is up to the contractor if they want to reuse the existing ones and no more are needed during the fully executed contract life.

11. Question: Can the government provide how many bed bug service requests have occurred in the past 12 months?

Answer: Answered in the previous question above.

12. Question: Can the government provide how many bat service requests have occurred in the past 12 months?

Answer: Zero (0) in the past 5 years.

13. Question: How many bird service requests have occurred in the past 12 months at the following locations?

Answer: ???

14. Question: How many bee, hornets or wasp service requests have occurred in the past 12 months at the following locations?

Answer: Two (2) In the last 5 years. One (1) was three months ago that flew out on their own without Wildlife Services being needed or contacted. There was an exhaust vent motor in an attic that died and the fan was no longer operating properly that allowed it to enter.

The fan motor was repaired/replaced.

There was another one last year with pigeons being inside the boiler plant due to the design of the plant/building, all the windows are open all year long. They were determined to be seasonal and do not require Wildlife Services as prevention would require redesign of the building. Once the spring weather warmed up a little, any birds that nest in the building dislike the heat 100-140deg temps created by the excess boiler heat at the roof level and leave on their own. It was determined that the presence of the birds requires specific climate conditions for them to accumulate in the building at all and Wildlife Services are not required when/if they do nest there temporarily in that building at any later date.

15. Question: How many wood-destroying organisms services (subterranean termites, dry wood termites, fungi, wood boring beetles, etc.) have occurred at Bedford VAMC over the past 12 months?

Answer: Zero (0) in the last five years.

The majority of the problems are cockroaches (American and German), spiders, some centipedes, little non-specific beetles/bugs, “I saw a bug in my office” reports. The other issue we have is sometimes with mice.

16. Question: Can the government clarify how many emergency/unscheduled service requests there have been in the past 12 months?

Answer: There were two (2) last year that were invoiced at the emergency or wildlife service rate. One (1) was for a squirrel in the exterior eve doorway overhead that needed Wildlife Services to trap and remove.

There was another off-schedule call during regular business hours that was invoiced as emergency service that required a technician to evaluate bees in an office. Due to the nature of the office space involved required a technician to respond and evaluate the circumstances.

The treatment of the bee’s was done during regular scheduled visit.

Additional Information: The expectations of the Pest Control contract is to supply services twice weekly on Tuesdays and Thursdays for approximately 1.5 – 2.0 hours each day. That includes any filing, recording of information, and paperwork. During those hours, the contractor will attend to any Pest Control work orders that were submitted from the facility and take care of any facility level treatment (check exterior bait stations, inspect/treat kitchen areas as scheduled, etc.…)