36C25719Q0905-001.pdf

SCHEDULE OF SERVICES

Under the authority of Public Law 104-262 and 38 USC 8153, the Contractor shall provide Scarce Medical Specialist Services, TWO(2) Primary Care Physicians, for Veteran beneficiaries of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) West Texas Veterans Health Care System (WTVAHCS) in accordance with future terms and conditions of this contract, as well as with the potential Contractor’s FSS Schedule 621-I contract, if applicable. Services shall be performed at the following West Texas VA Health Care System, Primary Care Clinic, Abilene, Texas. The contract effective period shall be for a six (6) month period with the option to extend for 6 months.

West Texas VA Health Care System Abilene CBOC 3850 Ridgemont Drive Abilene, Texas 79606

CONTRACT PERIOD:*

6 month period of performance (Base Period) With one (1) six-month option to extend (Option Period)

ESTIMATED

ITEM DESCRIPTION QTY UNIT UNIT PRICE TOTAL

1 One Primary Care Physician 1080 Hrs $______ $___ _ Monday - Friday, except Federal holidays 8:00 am - 4:30 pm (30 minute lunch break)

2 One Primary Care Physician 1080 Hrs $_________ $________ Monday - Friday, except Federal holidays 8:00 am - 4:30 pm (30 minute lunch break)

3 Hourly Overtime Service as Required Hour $_________

* Actual dates may change based on the date of contract award.

STATEMENT OF WORK

1. SERVICES:

a. Serves shall be provided 40 hours per week during regular working hours with the exception of Federal holidays. Regular working hours are from 8 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. with a 30-minute lunch break. In the event that overtime hours are required prior approval must be received by the WTVAHCS supervision physician.

b. Services provided under this contract shall be performed in an ambulatory care setting at the WTVAHCS Facility.

c. Provider shall serve as Staff Provider (Physician, Nurse Practitioner, or Physician Assistant) throughout the period of the contract and shall be under the direction of the Associate Chief of Staff (ACOS), Ambulatory Care Service, or designee.

d. Provider shall see patients for general medicine problems including performing the history and physical exam, making electronic progress notes, scheduling return visits, writing orders for lab and x-ray, prescribing medications, etc. Functioning as a primary care provider, the provider shall request, as indicated, consultations from specialists and subspecialists on the WTVAHCS staff.

e. Provider shall participate in quality management activities that pertain to his/her contract duties.

f. In addition to the above clinical responsibilities, provider shall hold routine administrative duties.

g. Shall participate in clinical conferences for staff and shall attend medical staff and service-level meetings.

h. Services shall be performed in accordance with VA policies and procedures and the regulations of the medical staff bylaws of WTVAHCS.

i. All referrals for non-VA-administered care will be pre-authorized by the ACOS, Ambulatory Care Service (or designee) during regular office hours or by the Chief of Staff (or designee) during non-administrative hours, prior to initiating patient scheduling or transfer. VA shall not be financially responsible for improperly authorized or for unauthorized care provided to patients.

j. Provider shall enter all medical documentation in the Computerized Patient Records System (CPRS) and electronically sign all.

k. Enter orders and prescriptions electronically using CPRS, as appropriate.

l. Complete electronic clinical reminders in accordance with VA policy and procedures using CPRS.

Provider must comply with all VA performance measure requirements.

m. The ACOS, Ambulatory Care Service (or designee) shall determine, with regard to VA needs, the frequency and lengths of clinic dates and times for clinics, but duty hours will not exceed 8 hours per day.

o. The contract provider shall request, at a minimum, two (2) weeks notice of all planned leave in order to accommodate rescheduling of VA patients.

2. PROVIDER QUALIFICATIONS:

a. Preference shall be given to candidate’s board certified in Internal Medicine or Family Practice.

However, Board Eligible candidates will be considered.

b. Shall possess unrestricted license to practice medicine in a state or territory of the United States of America or the District of Columbia.

c. Shall be certified in Basic Life Support (BLS).

d. Shall be able to utilize electronic record systems, including keyboarding and have pervious VA experience.

e. Shall possess basic proficiency in spoken and written English.

f. Shall be mentally and physically able to fulfill responsibilities of the work to be performed.

f. Shall be credentialed and privileged by WTVAHCS prior to performing services under this contract.

Provider qualifications are subject to review by the VA Chief of Staff and to approval by the VA Facility Director.

g.

3. SPECIAL CONTRACT REQUIREMENTS

a. PERSONNEL POLICY: The Contractor provider(s) shall not be considered VA employees for any purpose.

b. NATIONAL HOLIDAYS: The 10 holidays observed by the Federal Government are:

New Years Day Labor Day Martin Luther King’s Birthday Columbus Day Presidents Day Veterans Day Memorial Day Thanksgiving Day Independence Day Christmas Day

And any other day specifically declared by the President of the United States to be a National Holiday.

c. KEY PERSONNEL AND TEMPORARY EMERGENCY SUBSTITUTIONS: The Contractor shall assign to this contract the following key personnel:

(1) During the first ninety (90) days of performance, the Contractor shall make NO substitutions of key personnel unless the substitution is necessitated by illness, death, or termination of employment. The Contractor shall notify the Contracting Officer, in writing, within 15 calendar days after the occurrence of any of these events and provide the information required by paragraph 3. below. After the initial 90-day period of the contract, the Contractor shall submit the information required by paragraph 3. to the Contracting Officer at least 15 days prior to making any permanent substitutions.

(2) The Contractor shall provide a detailed explanation of the circumstances necessitating the proposed substitutions, complete resumes for the proposed substitutes, and any additional information requested by the Contracting Officer. Proposed substitutes shall have comparable qualifications to those of the persons being replaced. The Contracting Officer will notify the Contractor within 15 calendar days after receipt of all required information of the decision on the proposed substitutes. The contract shall be modified to reflect any approved changes of key personnel.

(3) For temporary substitutions where the key person will not be reporting to work for three (3) consecutive work days or more, the Contractor shall provide a qualified replacement for the key person, as required by the Government. This substitute shall have comparable qualifications to the key person. Any period exceeding two weeks will require the procedure as stated above.

d. RECORD KEEPING: WTVAHCS shall establish and maintain a record keeping system that will record the hours worked by the Contractor’s employee(s). Contractor's employee(s) shall report to the Medical Officer, or designee upon arrival at the WTVAHCS.

e. CONTRACT PERFORMANCE MONITORING:

(1) Provider duties shall be monitored daily by the ACOS, Ambulatory Care Service or designee.

(2) Provider productivity and compliance with VA clinical performance measure standards shall be monitored monthly by the ACOS, Ambulatory Care Service or designee.

f. JCAHO AND OTHER SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS:

(1) The Contractor will be responsible to ensure that Contractor’s employees providing work on this contract are fully trained and completely competent to perform the required work.

(2) The Contractor is required to maintain records that document performance level of Contractor employees working on this contract in accordance with Joint Commission for Accreditation of Health Care Organizations (JCAHO) and other regulatory body requirements. The Contractor will provide a current copy of the annual performance evaluation to the Contracting Officer’s Technical Representative (COTR) for each Contractor employee working on this contract.

(3) Contractor’s Health Care Provider personnel shall be subject to the same quality assurance standards in meeting or exceeding current recognized National Standards as established by the JCAHO. Copies of the JCAHO standards are available to the Contractor by purchase via Internet website www.jcaho.org (or at One Renaissance Blvd., Oakbrook, IL 60181 Tel. (630) 792-5000). The Contractor shall perform services in accordance with the ethical, professional, and technical standards of the healthcare industry as consistent with VA policy, regulations, and procedures. Persons provided by Contractor shall be technically proficient in the skills necessary to fulfill the Government’s requirements, to include the ability to speak, understand, read, and write English fluently. Contract personnel shall be responsible for compliance with all procedures in accordance with West Texas Veterans Health Care System written policies, procedures, Bylaws of the Medical Staff, and protocols.

They shall not introduce new procedures or services without prior recommendation to and approval of an authorized representative of WTVAHCS.

(4) The VA will monitor the Contractor employee’s work to ensure contract compliance.

(5) Not withstanding other contract requirements, upon request by the Contracting Officer the Contractor will remove from the work site, any Contractor employee who does not comply with orientation requirements or meet competency requirements for the work being performed.

g. HEALTH INSURANCE PORTABILITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 1996 (HIPAA): Contractor must adhere to the provisions of Public Law 104-191, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996 and the National Standards to Protect the Privacy and Security of Protected Health Information (PHI). As required by HIPAA, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has promulgated rules governing the security and use and disclosure of protected health information by covered entities, including the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). In accordance with HIPAA, the Contractor may be required to enter into a Business Associate Agreement (BAA) with VA. CRNA services qualifies as a medical service – therefore, no BAA is required.

h. CONFIDENTIALITY OF PATIENT RECORDS

(1) The Contractor, as a VA provider, will assist in the provision of health care to patients seeking such care from or through VA. As such, the Contractor is considered as being part of the Department health care activity. Contractor is considered to be a VA provider for purposes of the Privacy Act, Title 5 U.S.C. 552a. Further, for the purpose of VA records access and patient confidentiality, Contractor is considered to be a VA contractor for the following provisions: Title 38 U.S.C. 5701, 5705, and 7362. Therefore, Contractor may have access, as would other appropriate components of VA, to patient medical records including patient treatment records pertaining to drug and alcohol abuse, HIV, and sickle cell anemia, to the extent necessary to perform its contractual responsibilities. However, like other components of the Department, and not withstanding any other provisions of the contract, the Contractor is restricted from making disclosures of VA records, or information contained in such records, to which it may have access, except to the extent that explicit disclosure authority from VA has been received. The Contractor is subject to the same penalties and liabilities for unauthorized disclosures of such records as VA.

(2) The records referred to above shall be and remain the property of VA and shall not be removed or transferred from VA except in accordance with U.S.C.551a (Privacy Act), 38 U.S.C. 5701 (Confidentiality of claimants records), 5 U.S.C. 552 (FOIA), 38 U.S.C. 5705 (Confidentiality of Medical Quality Assurance Records) 38 U.S.C. 7332 (Confidentiality of certain medical records) and federal laws, rules and regulations. Subject to applicable federal confidentiality or privacy laws, the Contractor, or their designated representatives, and designated representatives of federal regulatory agencies having jurisdiction over Contractor, may have access to VA ‘s records, at VA’s place of business on request during normal business hours, to inspect and review and make copies of such records.

i. CONTRACTOR PERSONNEL SECURITY REQUIREMENTS: LOW RISK

(1) All Contractor employees having or requiring access to the Department of Veterans Affairs' computer systems or to sensitive data (to include patient or beneficiary records), shall be the subject of a background investigation and must receive a favorable adjudication from the VA Office of Security and Law Enforcement prior to contract performance. This requirement is applicable to all subcontractor personnel requiring the same access.

(2) The Contracting Officer will provide the appropriate Background Investigation information to the Contractor for completion. The complete package must be submitted by the Contractor with all employee information to the VA Office of Security and Law Enforcement within five (5) calendar days of receipt.

(3) Contractor staff shall not begin performance until notification is received from the Contracting Officer that the Security Package has been received and is considered a complete package. It is not necessary that the full investigation be complete prior to commencement of work. However, if the investigation is not completed prior to the start date of the contract, the Contractor shall be responsible for the actions of those individuals they provide to perform work for VA.

(a) Position Sensitivity - The position sensitivity has been designated as Low Risk. “The C&A requirements do not apply and a Security Accreditation Package is not required”

(b) Background Investigation - The level of background investigation commensurate with the required level of access is a National Agency Check with Written Inquiries.

(c) Contractor Responsibilities -

1. The Contractor shall bear the expense of obtaining background investigations. The VA is responsible for payment to the Security Investigations Center; however upon final payment, the VA will submit a Bill of Collections to the contractor. The Contractor is responsible for reimbursement to the VA within 30 calendar days. The current cost for a low risk background investigation is $210 per case.

2. For Low Risk Sensitivity Designation, each contractor/subcontractor employee must complete the following forms.

(i) Standard Form 85, Questionnaire for Non-Sensitive Positions

(ii) Optional Form 306, Declaration for Federal Employment

(iii) FD 258, U.S. Department of Justice Fingerprint Applicant Chart

3. The Contractor, when notified of an unfavorable determination by the Government, shall withdraw the employee from consideration from working under the contract.

4. Failure to comply with the contractor personnel security requirements may result in termination of the contract for default.

(d) Fingerprinting Requirements - The Form FD258 fingerprint chart will be supplied by the Contracting Officer. This card can be taken to any local police station for fingerprints. However, local entities may assess a fee for this service. As an alternative the Contractor may come to the VA (Human Resources) for this service. The completed fingerprint chart must accompany the SF 85 when submitted to the VA Office of Security and Law Enforcement.

j. CONTRACTOR SECURITY INFORMATION TRAINING REQUIREMENTS: All Contractor personnel who access, process or transmit VA PHI shall be required to complete VA Information Security Awareness and HIPAA training on an annual basis and shall be required to sign a VA Computer Access Agreement.

Training shall be coordinated with the COTR and shall be completed prior to gaining access to VA computer systems or networks.

k. INVOICES: Invoices shall be dated and submitted monthly in arrears. Invoice shall depict the contract physician's name, dates and hours worked, and assigned purchase order number. Submit invoice to the address in Block 18a of the SF 1449.

l. OFFEROR'S REQUIREMENTS:

(1) The Offeror/Contractor is required to furnish and maintain current documentation for all persons performing under the contract, which is necessary for credentialing and privileging.

(2) The Offeror shall submit the following information and documents with the proposal:

(a) copies of all current licenses and certificates as appropriate;

(b) current curriculum vitae material;

(c) three (3) references (name, address, capacity, telephone number) including the current or last supervisor;

(d) statement of availability; and

(e) statement of health.

(3) Upon selection by the VA of a provider-candidate under this contract, the Offeror shall submit/facilitate submission of the documents which are necessary for credentialing and privileging the provider-candidate.

(4) The Contractor shall maintain during the term of this contract liability insurance issued by a responsible insurance carrier of not less than $1,000,000 per specialty per occurrence. The Contractor shall furnish evidence of its insurability concerning this medical liability insurance requirement prior to commencement of services under the awarded contract.

m. EVALUATION:

(1) The Government shall award a contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose offer, conforming to the solicitation, will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered. The following factors shall be used to evaluate offers:

(a) Skills and abilities based upon past performance as determined from interviewing references and verifying curriculum vitae information. Provide complete information with no gaps and reference contact information.

(b) Current license(s), current board certification or board eligible status; special training as required in the Solicitation and pervious VA experience

(c) Availability of physician - based on ability to remain for the complete contract period.

(d) Price

(2) The criteria listed in (a) through (c) above are “technical” criteria. The price criteria is of less importance than all technical criteria combined.

n. ID BADGES/PARKING/SMOKING POLICY:

(1) BADGES - All Contractor personnel are required to wear identification (ID) badges during the entire time they are on the VA grounds.

(2) PARKING - It is the responsibility of Contractor personnel to park only in designated parking areas.

Parking information is available from the VA Security Service. The VA will not invalidate or make reimbursement for parking violations of the Contractor's personnel under any circumstances.

(2) SMOKING - Smoking is not permitted within or around the VA Healthcare System facilities, except in designated areas.

Appendix

GENERAL

Contractors, contractor personnel, subcontractors, and subcontractor personnel shall be subject to the same Federal laws, regulations, standards, and VA Directives and Handbooks.

ACCESS TO VA INFORMATION AND VA INFORMATION SYSTEMS

a. A contractor/subcontrator shall request logical (technical) or physical access to VA information and VA information systems for their employees, subcontractors, and affiliates only to the extent necessary to perform the services specified in the contract, agreement, or task order.

b. All contractors, subcontractors, and third-party servicers and associates working with VA information are subject to the same investigative requirements as those of VA appointees or employees who have access to the same types of information. The level and process of background security investigations for contractors must be in accordance with VA Directive and Handbook 0710, Personnel Suitability and Security Program. The Office for Operations, Security, and Preparedness is responsible for these policies and procedures.

c. The contractor or subcontractor must notify the Contracting Officer immediately when an employee working on a VA system or with access to VA information is reassigned or leaves the contractor or subcontractor’s employ. The Contracting Officer must also be notified immediately by the contractor or subcontractor prior to an unfriendly termination.

VA INFORMATION CUSTODIAL LANGUAGE

a. Information made available to the contractor or subcontractor by VA for the performance or administration of this contract or information developed by the contractor/ subcontractor in performance or administration of the contract shall be used only for those purposes and shall not be used in any other way without the prior written agreement of the VA. This clause expressly limits the contractor/subcontractor's rights to use data as described in Rights in Data - General, FAR 52.227-14(d) (1).

b. VA information should not be co-mingled, if possible, with any other data on the contractors/subcontractor’s information systems or media storage systems in order to ensure VA requirements related to data protection and media sanitization can be met. If co-mingling must be allowed to meet the requirements of the business need, the contractor must ensure that VA’s information is returned to the VA or destroyed in accordance with VA’s sanitization requirements. VA reserves the right to conduct on site inspections of contractor and subcontractor IT resources to ensure data security controls, separation of data and job duties, and destruction/media sanitization procedures are in compliance with VA directive requirements.

c. Prior to termination or completion of this contract, contractor/subcontractor must not destroy information received from VA, or gathered/created by the contractor in the course of performing this contract without prior written approval by the VA. Any data destruction done on behalf of VA by a contractor/subcontractor must be done in accordance with National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) requirements as outlined in VA Directive 6300, Records and Information Management and its Handbook 6300.1 Records Management Procedures, applicable VA Records Control Schedules, and VA Handbook 6500.1, Electronic Media Sanitization. Self-certification by the contractor that the data destruction requirements above have been met must be sent to the VA Contracting Officer within 30 days of termination of the contract.

d. The contractor/subcontractor must receive, gather, store, back up, maintain, use, disclose and dispose of VA information only in compliance with the terms of the contract and applicable Federal and VA information confidentiality and security laws, regulations and policies. If Federal or VA information confidentiality and security laws, regulations and policies become applicable to the VA information or information systems after execution of the contract, or if NIST issues or updates applicable FIPS or Special Publications (SP) after execution of this contract, the parties agree to negotiate in good faith to implement the information confidentiality and security laws, regulations and policies in this contract.

e. The contractor/subcontractor shall not make copies of VA information except as authorized and necessary to perform the terms of the agreement or to preserve electronic information stored on contractor/subcontractor electronic storage media for restoration in case any electronic equipment or data used by the contractor/subcontractor needs to be restored to an operating state.

If copies are made for restoration purposes, after the restoration is complete, the copies must be appropriately destroyed.

f. If VA determines that the contractor has violated any of the information confidentiality, privacy, and security provisions of the contract, it shall be sufficient grounds for VA to withhold payment to the contractor or third party or terminate the contract for default or terminate for cause under Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) part 12.

g. If a VHA contract is terminated for cause, the associated BAA must also be terminated and appropriate actions taken in accordance with VHA Handbook 1600.01, Business Associate Agreements. Absent an agreement to use or disclose protected health information, there is no business associate relationship.

h. The contractor/subcontractor must store, transport, or transmit VA sensitive information in an encrypted form, using VA-approved encryption tools that are, at a minimum, FIPS 140-2validated.

i. Except for uses and disclosures of VA information authorized by this contract for performance of the contract, the contractor/subcontractor may use and disclose VA information only in two other situations: (i) in response to a qualifying order of a court of competent jurisdiction, or (ii) with VA’s prior written approval. The contractor/subcontractor must refer all requests for, demands for production of, or inquiries about, VA information and information systems to the VA contracting officer for response.

j. Notwithstanding the provision above, the contractor/subcontractor shall not release VA records protected by Title 38 U.S.C. 5705, confidentiality of medical quality assurance records and/or Title 38 U.S.C. 7332, confidentiality of certain health records pertaining to drug addiction, sickle cell anemia, alcoholism or alcohol abuse, or infection with human immunodeficiency virus. If the contractor/subcontractor is in receipt of a court order or other requests for the above mentioned information, that contractor/subcontractor shall immediately refer such court orders or other requests to the VA contracting officer for response.

SECURITY INCIDENT INVESTIGATION

a. The term “security incident” means an event that has, or could have, resulted in unauthorized access to, loss or damage to VA assets, or sensitive information, or an action that breaches VA security procedures. The contractor/subcontractor shall immediately notify the COR and simultaneously, the designated ISO and Privacy Officer for the contract of any known or suspected security/privacy incidents, or any unauthorized disclosure of sensitive information, including that contained in system(s) to which the contractor/subcontractor has access.

b. To the extent known by the contractor/subcontractor, the contractor/subcontractor’s notice to VA shall identify the information involved, the circumstances surrounding the incident (including to whom, how, when, and where the VA information or assets were placed at risk or compromised), and any other information that the contractor/subcontractor considers relevant.

c. With respect to unsecured protected health information, the business associate is deemed to have discovered a data breach when the business associate knew or should have known of a breach of such information. Upon discovery, the business associate must notify the covered entity of the breach. Notifications need to be made in accordance with the executed business associate agreement.

d. In instances of theft or break-in or other criminal activity, the contractor/subcontractor must concurrently report the incident to the appropriate law enforcement entity (or entities) of jurisdiction, including the VA OIG and Security and Law Enforcement. The contractor, its employees, and its subcontractors and their employees shall cooperate with VA and any law enforcement authority responsible for the investigation and prosecution of any possible criminal law violation(s) associated with any incident. The contractor/subcontractor shall cooperate with VA in any civil litigation to recover VA information, obtain monetary or other compensation from a third party for damages arising from any incident, or obtain injunctive relief against any third party arising from, or related to, the incident.

LIQUIDATED DAMAGES FOR DATA BREACH

a. Consistent with the requirements of 38 U.S.C. §5725, a contract may require access to sensitive personal information. If so, the contractor is liable to VA for liquidated damages in the event of a data breach or privacy incident involving any SPI the contractor/subcontractor processes or maintains under this contract. However, it is the policy of VA to forgo collection of liquidated damages in the event the contractor providers payment of actual damages in an amount determined to be adequate by the agency.

b. The contractor/subcontractor shall provide notice to VA of a “security incident” as set forth in the Security Incident Investigation section above. Upon such notification, VA must secure from a non-Department entity or the VA Office of Inspector General an independent risk analysis of the data breach to determine the level of risk associated with the data breach for the potential misuse of any sensitive personal information involved in the data breach. The term 'data breach' means the loss, theft, or other unauthorized access, or any access other than that incidental to the scope of employment, to data containing sensitive personal information, in electronic or printed form, that results in the potential compromise of the confidentiality or integrity of the data. Contractor shall fully cooperate with the entity performing the risk analysis. Failure to cooperate may be deemed a material breach and grounds for contract termination.

c. Each risk analysis shall address all relevant information concerning the data breach, including the following:

(1) Nature of the event (loss, theft, unauthorized access);

(2) Description of the event, including:

(a) date of occurrence;

(b) data elements involved, including any PII, such as full name, social security number, date of birth, home address, account number, disability code;

(3) Number of individuals affected or potentially affected;

(4) Names of individuals or groups affected or potentially affected;

(5) Ease of logical data access to the lost, stolen or improperly accessed data in light of the degree of protection for the data, e.g., unencrypted, plain text;

(6) Amount of time the data has been out of VA control;

(7) The likelihood that the sensitive personal information will or has been compromised (made accessible to and usable by unauthorized persons);

(8) Known misuses of data containing sensitive personal information, if any;

(9) Assessment of the potential harm to the affected individuals;

(10) Data breach analysis as outlined in 6500.2 Handbook, Management of Security and Privacy Incidents, as appropriate; and

(11) Whether credit protection services may assist record subjects in avoiding or mitigating the results of identity theft based on the sensitive personal information that may have been compromised.

d. Based on the determinations of the independent risk analysis, the contractor shall be responsible for paying to the VA liquidated damages in the amount of $37.50 per affected individual to cover the cost of providing credit protection services to affected individuals consisting of the following:

(1) Notification;

(2) One year of credit monitoring services consisting of automatic daily monitoring of at least 3 relevant credit bureau reports;

(3) Data breach analysis;

(4) Fraud resolution services, including writing dispute letters, initiating fraud alerts and credit freezes, to assist affected individuals to bring matters to resolution;

(5) One year of identity theft insurance with $20,000.00 coverage at $0 deductible; and

(6) Necessary legal expenses the subjects may incur to repair falsified or damaged credit records, histories, or financial affairs.

SECURITY CONTROLS COMPLIANCE TESTING

On a periodic basis, VA, including the Office of Inspector General, reserves the right to evaluate any or all of the security controls and privacy practices implemented by the contractor under the clauses contained within the contract. With 10 working-day’s notice, at the request of the government, the contractor must fully cooperate and assist in a government-sponsored security controls assessment at each location wherein VA information is processed or stored, or information systems are developed, operated, maintained, or used on behalf of VA, including those initiated by the Office of Inspector General. The government may conduct a security control assessment on shorter notice (to include unannounced assessments) as determined by VA in the event of a security incident or at any other time.

TRAINING

a. All contractor employees and subcontractor employees requiring access to VA information and VA information systems shall complete the following before being granted access to VA information and its systems:

(1) Sign and acknowledge (either manually or electronically) understanding of and responsibilities for compliance with the Contractor Rules of Behavior, Appendix E relating to access to VA information and information systems;

(2) Successfully complete the VA Privacy and Information Security Awareness and Rules of Behavior training and annually complete required security training;

(3) Successfully complete the appropriate VA privacy training and annually complete required privacy training;

and

(4) Successfully complete any additional cyber security or privacy training, as required for VA personnel with equivalent information system access [to be defined by the VA program official and provided to the contracting officer for inclusion in the solicitation document – e.g., any role-based information security training required in accordance with NIST Special Publication 800-16, Information Technology Security Training Requirements.]

b. The contractor shall provide to the contracting officer and/or the COTR a copy of the training certificates and certification of signing the Contractor Rules of Behavior for each applicable employee within 1 week of the initiation of the contract and annually thereafter, as required.

c. Failure to complete the mandatory annual training and sign the Rules of Behavior annually, within the timeframe required, is grounds for suspension or termination of all physical or electronic access privileges and removal from work on the contract until such time as the training and documents are complete.