Amendment 00001 Attachment.pdf

Solicitation 75N97026R00001

Amendment 00001 NLM Subscription Services Questions & Responses

1. Can you confirm that the Technical, Business and Past Performance volumes are to be limited to 20 double-spaced (10 single spaced) pages.

The 20-page double-spaced limit applies to each proposal volume individually. Offerors may submit up to 20 double-spaced pages for each of the three parts — Technical, Business, and Past Performance — for a combined maximum of 60 double-spaced pages across all three volumes.

As a reminder, tables of contents, works cited, and Technical Appendices (resumes, transcripts, letters of commitment, and the HHS Section 508 Evaluation Template) are excluded from the page count per Section L.8 of the solicitation.

2. Question regarding the pricing of the CLIN 0002. The pricing type states, “fixed price with Economic Price Adjustment”. Does this mean you require firm/fixed pricing per title prior to invoicing?

No, firm/fixed pricing per title is not required prior to invoicing. As stated in Section B.5 and Section H.15 of the solicitation, subscription services under CLIN 0002 are priced on a catalog-based, variable quantity basis using established commercial catalog or market prices in effect at the time of order. The price for each subscription title is determined at the time of order placement based on the then-current commercial catalog or market price for that specific item.

Offerors are not required to propose a price for CLIN 0002 (or the corresponding option period CLINs 1002, 2002, 3002, and 4002) as part of their proposal. These CLINs will not be priced by the offeror at time of proposal submission. Instead, offerors should describe their pricing methodology, identify their sources of catalog or market pricing, and provide representative examples sufficient for the Government to evaluate the reasonableness of the proposed pricing approach, as required by Section L.9.2(b) of the solicitation.

Actual pricing is subject to Economic Price Adjustment (EPA) in accordance with FAR 52.216-2 and may vary based on publisher offerings, catalog changes, formats, and quantities throughout the period of performance.

The Not-to-Exceed (NTE) amounts specified in Section B for each period of performance represent the maximum ordering value for subscription services and shall not be exceeded. The NTE amount is not a guaranteed amount and does not represent the Government's commitment to obligate the full value. Actual obligations are subject to Government need and availability of funds.

3. Should proposed pricing reflect the 2026 or 2027 subscription year?

Pricing methodology should reflect the 2027 subscription year. The July 2026 start date allows time for 2027 orders to be placed and paid for ahead of the start of the 2027 subscription year.

Offerors are reminded that per Section B.5 and Section H.15, subscription services under CLIN 0002 (and the corresponding option period CLINs 1002, 2002, 3002, and 4002) are priced on a catalog-based, variable quantity basis using established commercial catalog or market prices in effect at the time of order. Offerors are not required to propose a price for these CLINs at time of proposal submission. Instead, offerors should describe their pricing methodology, identify their sources of catalog or market pricing, and provide representative examples sufficient for the Government to evaluate the reasonableness of the proposed pricing approach, as required by Section L.9.2(b) of the solicitation.

Actual pricing is subject to Economic Price Adjustment (EPA) in accordance with FAR 52.216-2 and may vary based on publisher offerings, catalog changes, formats, and quantities throughout the period of performance.

The Not-to-Exceed (NTE) amounts specified in Section B for each period of performance represent the maximum ordering value for subscription services and shall not be exceeded. The NTE amount is not a guaranteed amount and does not represent the Government's commitment to obligate the full value. Actual obligations are subject to Government need and availability of funds.

4. Could the Government provide Attachment 2 – SOW Attachment – Serial Title List with start and end dates for each title, as well as publication frequency for print-only and print + online formats?

The Government will not be providing additional data fields such as subscription start and end dates or publication frequency for the titles listed in Attachment J.2 – SOW Attachment – Serial Title List. The serial title list contains approximately 6,000 titles, and providing this level of detail for each title is not feasible within the scope of this solicitation.

Offerors are expected to have the expertise and resources to research publication frequency, format availability, and other bibliographic details for the titles listed, as this capability is consistent with the nature of the services being acquired and will be evaluated under Factor 2: Corporate Capability. Offerors are encouraged to leverage their existing bibliographic databases, publisher relationships, and industry resources accordingly.

5. Given the size of the title list, is there a minimum percentage of titles that must be priced for a proposal to be considered acceptable?

The solicitation does not establish a minimum percentage of titles that must be priced for a proposal to be considered acceptable. As stated in Section B.5 and Section H.15, subscription services under CLIN 0002 are priced on a catalog-based, variable quantity basis using commercial catalog or market prices in effect at the time of order. Offerors are not required to price every title on the serial title list as part of their proposal.

However, offerors are reminded that the Government's requirement encompasses the worldwide acquisition of biomedical literature, including foreign language titles.

Proposals will be evaluated under Factor 2: Corporate Capability on the offeror's demonstrated ability to supply subscription services for titles published worldwide.

Offerors should ensure their proposed approach and supporting documentation reflect the breadth of their coverage capabilities.

6. Can the Government provide the number of FTEs, as certain titles use tiered pricing?

The Government will not be providing FTE counts for pricing purposes. Tiered pricing based on FTEs or other institutional metrics is a commercial pricing consideration that offerors are expected to address as part of their catalog-based pricing methodology, consistent with Section B.5 and Section H.15 of the solicitation.

As noted in the responses above, offerors are not required to propose a price for CLIN 0002 (or the corresponding option period CLINs 1002, 2002, 3002, and 4002) at time of proposal submission. Instead, offerors should describe in their proposal how they will handle tiered pricing structures, including how they will work with NLM to determine the appropriate pricing tier for applicable titles at the time of order, as required by Section L.9.2(b) of the solicitation.

7. Please confirm the delivery location(s) for the print and print + online publications listed in Attachment 2.

Print and print + online publications shall be delivered to the National Library of Medicine (NLM) at the following address:

National Library of Medicine 8600 Rockville Pike Bethesda, MD 20894

Offerors are referred to Section D of the solicitation for packaging and marking requirements, and to the Statement of Work (Attachment J.1) for additional delivery and consolidation shipment requirements. Specific delivery instructions, including any consolidated shipment schedules, will be established at the task order level following contract award.

8. Additionally, due to the volume of titles and the number of foreign publishers involved, we respectfully request an extension of the submission deadline to May 15.

The Government has considered this request and will not be extending the proposal due date. The submission deadline remains April 24, 2026 at 1:00 PM Eastern Time, as stated in Section L.6 of the solicitation.

Offerors are encouraged to submit their proposals in accordance with the instructions provided in Section L of the solicitation.