S02 - Amendment 36C25623Q0090 0001.pdf

5. PROJECT NUMBER (if applicable)

CODE 7. ADMINISTERED BY

2. AMENDMENT/MODIFICATION NUMBER

CODE

6. ISSUED BY

8. NAME AND ADDRESS OF CONTRACTOR

4. REQUISITION/PURCHASE REQ. NUMBER 3. EFFECTIVE DATE

9A. AMENDMENT OF SOLICITATION NUMBER

9B. DATED

PAGE OF PAGES

10A. MODIFICATION OF CONTRACT/ORDER NUMBER

10B. DATED

BPA NO. 1. CONTRACT ID CODE

FACILITY CODE CODE

Offers must acknowledge receipt of this amendment prior to the hour and date specified in the solicitation or as amended, by one of the following methods:

The above numbered solicitation is amended as set forth in Item 14. The hour and date specified for receipt of Offers

E. IMPORTANT:

is extended,

(a) By completing Items 8 and 15, and returning __________ copies of the amendment; (b) By acknowledging receipt of this amendment on each copy of the offer submitted; or (c) By separate letter or electronic communication which includes a reference to the solicitation and amendment numbers. FAILURE OF YOUR

ACKNOWLEDGMENT TO BE RECEIVED AT THE PLACE DESIGNATED FOR THE RECEIPT OF OFFERS PRIOR TO THE HOUR AND DATE SPECIFIED MAY is not extended.

12. ACCOUNTING AND APPROPRIATION DATA

(REV. 11/2016)

is required to sign this document and return ___________ copies to the issuing office. is not, A. THIS CHANGE ORDER IS ISSUED PURSUANT TO: (Specify authority) THE CHANGES SET FORTH IN ITEM 14 ARE MADE IN THE CONTRACT ORDER NO. IN ITEM 10A.

15C. DATE SIGNED

B. THE ABOVE NUMBERED CONTRACT/ORDER IS MODIFIED TO REFLECT THE ADMINISTRATIVE CHANGES

SET FORTH IN ITEM 14, PURSUANT TO THE AUTHORITY OF FAR 43.103(b).

RESULT IN REJECTION OF YOUR OFFER. If by virtue of this amendment you desire to change an offer already submitted, such change may be made by letter or electronic communication, provided each letter or electronic communication makes reference to the solicitation and this amendment, and is received prior to the opening hour and date specified.

C. THIS SUPPLEMENTAL AGREEMENT IS ENTERED INTO PURSUANT TO AUTHORITY OF:

D. OTHER

Contractor

16C. DATE SIGNED

14. DESCRIPTION OF AMENDMENT/MODIFICATION

16B. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Except as provided herein, all terms and conditions of the document referenced in Item 9A or 10A, as heretofore changed, remains unchanged and in full force and effect.

15A. NAME AND TITLE OF SIGNER 16A. NAME AND TITLE OF CONTRACTING OFFICER

15B. CONTRACTOR/OFFEROR

STANDARD FORM 30 PREVIOUS EDITION NOT USABLE

Prescribed by GSA - FAR (48 CFR) 53.243

(Type or print) (Type or print)

(Organized by UCF section headings, including solicitation/contract subject matter where feasible.)

(Number, street, county, State and ZIP Code)

(If other than Item 6)

(Specify type of modification and authority)

(such as changes in paying office, appropriation date, etc.)

(If required)

(SEE ITEM 11)

(SEE ITEM 13)

(X)

CHECK

ONE

13. THIS ITEM APPLIES ONLY TO MODIFICATIONS OF CONTRACTS/ORDERS,

IT MODIFIES THE CONTRACT/ORDER NO. AS DESCRIBED IN ITEM 14.

11. THIS ITEM ONLY APPLIES TO AMENDMENTS OF SOLICITATIONS

AMENDMENT OF SOLICITATION/MODIFICATION OF CONTRACT

(Signature of person authorized to sign) (Signature of Contracting Officer)

1 7

02-07-2023

36C256

Department of Veterans Affairs

Network Contracting Office 16

5075 Westheimer Road, Suite 750

Houston TX 77056-5643

36C256

Department of Veterans Affairs

Network Contracting Office 16

5075 Westheimer Road, Suite 750

Houston TX 77056-5643

To all Offerors/Bidders

36C25623Q0090

02-02-2023

X

X X x 1(one)

The purpose of this amendment is to post Questions and Answers (Q & A).

A. See continuation page 2.

B. This amendment 0001 will need to be signed and returned with quote submission to be eligible for award.

Stephanie Keo

Contracting Officer

VA-VHA-2020-49890DD7

CONTINUATION PAGE

The Network Contracting Office (NCO) 16 received questions in response to Request for Quote (RFQ)

36C25623Q0090

Please see below Contractor’s questions and NCO 16’s respective answers accordingly.

Contractor Questions VA Responses Q1 I wanted to confirm that 36 FTE plus a

Program manager is required for this effort?

VA require up to 35 registered nurses and a point of contact (POC) that Contracting

Officer’s Representative (COR), Associate

Director, Patient Care Services (ADPCS) or designee Clinical Administrative Supervisor

(House Supervisor) can coordinate and report problems 7 days a week, 24 hours a day.

Reference Performance Work Statement

(PWS) 1.1 and 1.3

Q2 Does the 36,400 hrs include overtime? The 36,400 hours include overtime. Overtime hours are priced at the same rate as regular time.

The scheduling, tracking and compensation of personnel in accordance with State or Federal

Law is the sole responsibility of the

Contractor. Overtime may be necessary and is applicable for any hours over 40 hours weekly worked at MEDVAMC. Overtime hours are priced at the same rate as regular time;

however, the contractor is responsible for ensuring that Overtime Service Contract Act guidelines are followed. Overtime must be pre-approved by the Staffing Office for the

Contract and will not be allowed for contractor staff to complete charting in the medical record.

Reference PWS 6.2

Q3 Are any of the positions lead positions? No

Q4 Is this a new effort or is there current incumbent personnel?

There is currently an incumbent contractor.

Q5 If this isn't a new effort, what is the current contract number?

Current contract 36C25622P0243.

Q6 What is the current vacancy count or rate? 33 contract nurses

Amendment 0001

Solicitation: 36C25623Q0090

Q7 The POP Begins: 02-20-2023. Based on our experience, it usually takes 6 weeks for the government to process security credentials. If the Solicitation due date is Feb 10, 2023 04:00 pm CST, and the planned POP is 10 days later, is the government going to eliminate the security credential process?

No the government is not going to eliminate the security credential process.

The government will continue with the security credential process and adjust the POP at time of award.

Q8 Is the requirement to on-ramp all 35 RN’s on day one (POP: 02-20-2023) or does

MEDVAMC have a gradual phase in plan (i.e.

10/week over 3 weeks)?

No, but we would like to avoid a gap in care.

Q9 B.2 PRICE/COST SCHEDULE ITEM

INFORMATION ITEM NUMBER

DESCRIPTION OF SUPPLIES/SERVICES

QUANTITY( 34,600) UNIT( HR) UNIT

PRICE______ AMOUNT_____.

On-site Registered Nurse Support for the

Intensive Care Unit and Other Critical areas in support of the Michael E. DeBakey Veterans

Affairs Medical Center, 2002 Holcombe

Boulevard Houston, Texas 77030. Invoicing and Payment is limited to quantity of hours for services rendered. Note: Period of Performance for base period is on a six (6) month period, effective date and end date may change depending on when award. Contract Period:

Base POP Begin: 02-20-2023 POP End: 08-19-

2023 GRAND TOTAL (End of..

Question: Form only allows for 1 unit price, which suggests that there is no delineation between local nurses and Travel Nurse ( as is customary in commercial proposals). So I assume we are to propose 1 rate to be applied whether we utilize local or travel nurses ....is that correct?

Yes. It will be one rate.

Q10 Page 12 of 19 5.2 and 5.3

5.2. MEDVAMC does not guarantee a set

contract or number of hours for any agency personnel. Contractor shall maintain sufficient

VA credentialed staff to meet service requests for uncovered shifts. Contractor shall confirm with VA the ability to meet all scheduled coverage requirements upon award of the contract.

It up to the contractor if they want to utilize local or travel nurses. Contractor shall maintain sufficient VA credentialed staff to meet service requests for uncovered shifts.

5.3. The VA reserves the right to cancel or

change any scheduled shift of any contract personnel with at least a two-hour notice to the contractor prior to cancellation of a shift, at no cost to the VA. If the VA fails to provide two-hour advance notice, the contractor may charge the VA for two (2) hours from the beginning of the cancelled shift. The VA retains the right to change the scheduled shift and/or work location within MEDVAMC, provided the nurse is clinically qualified to work in the area.

Question: Shifts and hours are not guaranteed which prohibits the use of travel nurses and relegates this opportunity to local/per diem type nurses ......is that accurate?

Q11

Page 13 of 79 ....6.2.

The scheduling, tracking and compensation of personnel in accordance with State or Federal

Law is the sole responsibility of the Contractor.

Overtime may be necessary and is applicable for any hours over 40 hours weekly worked at

MEDVAMC. Overtime hours are priced at the same rate as regular time; however, the contractor is responsible for ensuring that

Overtime Service Contract Act guidelines are followed. Overtime must be pre-approved by the Staffing Office for the Contract and will not be allowed for contractor staff to complete charting in the medical record. All patient/resident documentation must be completed prior to leaving for the day. Day and evening eight hour (8) tours include a ½ hour non-paid lunch break as well as all twelve (12) hour shifts. If patient/resident care needs prevent the ability to take a 30 minute lunch, the Nurse Manager or Staffing Office must be notified during the said shift to provide coverage or authorize no lunch. Contractor will notify COR or House Supervisor if staffing needs can only be met through overtime. Hours worked by contractor’s employees at a facility other than those covered by this contract, shall not be included in the calculation for overtime compensation under this contract.

Question: We see Overtime is priced at same rate as regular even though contractor is required to pay its clinicians overtime pay (

1.5X regular rate ) for all hours worked over 40 in a work week. Can that be revisited if

Overtime is only worked with approval in

Overtime hours are priced at the same rate as regular rate that is specified in the price schedule/cost schedule.

advance by of facility. Note : 12 hours shifts will relegate and limit our nurses to 3 shifts per week to avoid going into OT.

Q12 Page 17 of 79 # 13

13. FEDERAL HOLIDAYS: The eleven (11) holidays observed by the Federal Government are: • New Year’s Day, • Martin Luther King

Jr.’s Birthday, • President’s Day, • Memorial

Day, • Juneteenth, • Independence Day, •

Labor Day, • Columbus Day, • Veterans Day, •

Thanksgiving Day, • Christmas Day, and any other day designated by the President as a

National Holiday. An administrative closure of

Federal offices by Executive Order is not a

Federal holiday for the purpose of holiday pay.

Contractor will receive holiday pay for work performed only on the official holiday as designated by the Office of Personnel

Management (OPM).

Question: Will contractor be allowed to bill facility a Holiday rate given it must pay the nurse holiday pay on the designated holidays?

We assume that contractor will only be required to pay its clinicians for designated holidays they actually work on ..is that correct?

Yes, to both questions but will require prior approval from the Contracting Officer

Representative (COR) or House Supervisor.

Q13 Page 15 of 79

9. MEDVAMC CONDUCTED TRAINING

REQUIREMENTS: The Government requires that personnel attend the following training classes provided by MEDVAMC prior to reporting to the nurse on duty. 9.1. Nursing

Service Basic Orientation (est. 4 hrs.)* 9.2. In-service/validation of competency for specific work area (est. 4 hrs.) 9.3. EHR (Electronic

Health Record) System (est. 4 hrs.) 9.4. BCMA

(Bar Code Medication Administration) (est. 4 hrs.) 9.5. All mandatory VA Training Topics

9.6. In-service/validation of competency for

specific work area (est. 4 hrs.) 9.7. Electronic

Health Record (HER) System) (est. 4 hrs.) 9.8.

BCMA (Bar Code Medication Administration)

(est. 4 hrs.) 9.9. All mandatory VA Training

Topics

10. *MEDVAMC WILL REIMBURSE THE

CONTRACTOR FOR THE NURSING

SERVICE BASIC ORIENTATION CLASSES

ONLY AT THE RATES SPECIFIED IN THE

PURSUANT CONTRACT PAYMENT WILL

Yes. It will be the same rate as regular rate that is specified in the price schedule/cost schedule.

BE MADE ONLY AFTER PERSONNEL

HAVE COMPLETED A MINIMUM OF TWO

(2) SHIFTS OF SERVICE AT MEDVAMC.

IF THE CONTRACT EMPLOYEE FAILS TO

ATTEND A SCHEDULED TRAINING

CLASS WITHOUT PRIOR WRITTEN

APPROVAL FROM THE COR OR HOUSE

SUPERVISOR THIS WILL REFLECT ON

CONTRACTORS PAST PERFORMANCE.

FAILURE TO ATTEND A CLASS DUE TO

ILLNESS WILL BE EXCUSED ONLY IF

CONTRACTOR PROVIDES TELEPHONIC

NOTICE TO COR OR HOUSE

SUPERVISOR 2 HOURS PRIOR TO CLASS

SCHEDULED START TIME. THIS

CONTRACT SHALL PROVIDE MAXIMUM

FLEXIBILITY TO THE VA AUTHORITY IN

SCHEDULING.

10.1. All personnel performing services must

complete orientation prior to beginning work on contract shifts:

10.2. 8 hours of computer-based pre-orientation work (off-site by contract nursing staff)

10.3. 3 day new employee orientation (on-site at MEDVAMC)

10.4. 1 day competency Assessment (on-site at

MEDVAMC) **Competency Assessment will be pass/fail. Contract Staff must pass the assessment in order to begin working on the units

10.5. In addition, licensed RNs will undergo

orientation consisting of one, eight hour shift in each unit area the professional intends to work;

up to 32 hours (Acute

Question: It appears that contractor can bill facility for all required ( above mentioned ) orientation at the prevailing bill rate. Is that accurate?

Q14 1.1. pg 6. This is a NON-PERSONAL services requirement for up to 35 registered nurse Full

Time Equivalent (FTE)s to provide onsite

Intensive Care Unit (ICU) or Urgent/Critical

Care Nursing Services at the Michael E.

DeBakey VA Medical Center (MEDVAMC) located at 2002 Holcombe Boulevard, Houston, TX 77030. Contractor’s personnel shall perform on-site nursing services for varying periods of time and in various areas of

MEDVAMC and based on their qualifications, ER and Stepdown may be required to work in areas of the highest need on the date of their scheduled shifts.

What other various Urgent/critical care areas will nurses be needed in (Med/Surg)?

Q15 Pg 66 (12) Insurance - Proof of

Indemnification and Medical Liability

Insurance.

Is the contractor required to have this upon submission of Proposal or is this required upon contract award?

The successful bidder must present to the

Contracting Officer, prior to award, evidence of general liability insurance without any exclusionary clauses for asbestos that would void the general liability coverage. Contractor must have valid and active insurance policy after the solicitation close date.

Reference page 45-46 C.4 Supplemental

Insurance Requirements

(End of Amendment 0001)