Redacted_J A.pdf

Justification and Approval (J&A) for Other Than Full and Open Competition

I. Contracting Activity.

Department of the Air Force 773 Enterprise Sourcing Squadron (ESS) 3515 S. General McMullen, Suite 200 San Antonio, TX 78226-1865

II. Nature and/or description of the action being processed.

This Justification and Approval (J&A) has been prepared to justify a FFP sole source procurement for a 5 year (12 month base plus four one-year option periods) subscription to EBSCO's Cumulative Index for Nursing and Allied Health Literature Virtual Library to support Air Force Medical Service Agency (AFMSA)/SG3O. The tentative period of performance is 1 May 2015 through 20 April 2016 plus four (4) one-year option periods and an evaluated 6-month extension of services CLIN with the option to extend services at any time during the period of performance.

III. Description of supplies/services required to meet agency needs.

The Air Force Medical Service (AFMS) depends upon online resources to replace physical medical libraries. The contractor shall provide authorized users from all AFMS duty locations with the capability to access and to perform searches through the Air Force Virtual Library, posted on the AFMS gateway website, for a virtual library or database of medical journals, and content including figures, pictures, index and graphs, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The online resources provide full-text books and journals for nurses and nursing service providers. This specific collection offers over 5000 full-text journals, magazines, reports, newspapers, trade publications, monograph/reference books, and Government documents (Attachment 1) and is delivered electronically to the desks of providers at approximately 75 Military Treatment Facilities (MTFs).

IV. Statutory authority permitting Other than Full and Open Competition.

10 U.S.C. 2304(c)(1), as implemented by FAR 6.302-1, Only One Responsible Source and No Other Supplies or Services Will Satisfy Agency Requirements.

V. Demonstration that the contractor's unique qualifications or nature of the acquisition requires the use of the authority cited above (applicability of authority).

EBSCO's Cumulative Index for Nursing and Allied Health Literature Virtual Library is needed for patient care, education and research, and pertinent health information necessary to provide quality healthcare to military and civilian personnel. Several vendors provide books and journals however EBSCO is the only known source that is able to provide this required collection due to proprietary licensing rights. Common industry practice in formulating these collections involves a wholesaler (EBSCO) contracting with individual authors and then compiling all purchased rights into a database. Consideration is given to authors through publishing and the receipt of royalties for their work while the wholesaler maintains sole publishing rights. Furthermore, due to the specialized information contained within this collection, no other substitutions will fulfill the needs of AFMS's requirements.

VI. Description of efforts made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as practicable.

In order to ensure offers were solicited from as many potential sources, an RFI/Sources Sought was issued on 18 December 2014, with a closing date of 1:00 pm local San Antonio Time on 05 January 2015. No responses were received.

IAW FAR 6.305, Upon approval, this justification and approval document will be posted to www.fbo.gov within 14 days of award.

VII. Determination by the Contracting Officer that the anticipated cost to the Government will be fair and reasonable.

The Contracting Officer will determine the final price to be fair and reasonable based on comparison of similar requirements. The Contracting Officer has also determined this is a commercial requirement.

Therefore, in accordance with FAR 15.403-3(c) the Contracting Officer may require EBSCO to submit other than certified cost or pricing data to support further analysis.

VIII. Description of the market research conducted and the results, or a statement of the reasons market research was not conducted.

Additional market research was conducted searching SBA and a comparison of similar companies within the commercial industry. Market research conducted under SBA revealed that many companies exist under the NAICS Code 519130, Internet publishing and broadcasting and web search portals, however none of these companies are able to meet the minimum requirements. A comparison of similar companies within the publishing market reveals that these companies maintain their own individual collections and database features and cannot meet the minimum needs of this requirement.

IX. Any other facts supporting the use of Other Than Full and Open Competition.

None.

X. List of sources, if any, that expressed interest in the acquisition.

See Section VI above.

XI. A statement of the actions, if any, the agency may take to remove or overcome any barriers to competition before making subsequent acquisitions for the supplies or services required.

The AFMS will continuously conduct market research to determine if other vendors are capable of providing these services.

XII. Certification by the Contracting Officer.

As evidenced by my signature above, I have determined this document to be both accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

XIII. Certification by the technical/requirements personnel.

As evidenced by my signature(s) above, I certify that any supporting data contained herein, which is my responsibility, is both accurate and complete.