JA_GULF_MATO_Bridge_-_FBO.pdf

CLASS JUSTIFICATION AND APPROVAL FOR

OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION

J&A #10001-14

1. Contracting Activity.

Naval Medical Logistics Command (NMLC), Acquisitions Management Directorate, Code 02, 693 Neiman Street, Fort Detrick, Maryland 21702, acquiring on behalf of the military treatment facilities (MTFs) located in Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas.

2. Description of the Action Being Approved.

The government intends to establish D-type bridge contracts with the Gulf Coast Medical Multiple Award Task Order (MATO) contractors currently providing services. The current MATO contracts that require bridge services are as follows: N62645-09-D-5000 (CasePro, Inc. (CasePro)); N62645-09-D-5001 (Catalyst Professional Services (Catalyst)); N62645-09-D-5002 (Cherokee Medical Services (Cherokee)); N62645- 09-D-5003 (Chesapeake Educational Services, LLC (Chesapeake)); N62645-09-D-5004 (OMV Medical (OMV)); N62645-09-D-5005 (Professional Performance Development Group, Inc (PPDG)); N62645-09-D- 5006 (Saratoga Medical Center (Saratoga)); and N62645-09-D-5007 (TCMP Staffing Services (TCMP)).

3. Description of supplies/services.

Currently, the MTFs identified in paragraph 1 above are receiving multidisciplinary contract medical services using the Gulf Coast Medical MATO contracts, which are set to expire on 03 May 2014. This office is shifting acquisition strategies away from multidisciplinary labor bands and onto market segmented acquisitions in effort to better align with the healthcare industry and to attract companies specializing in their respective market segments. The services contained on the Gulf Coast Medical MATO will be competed onto to the Southeast Physician MATO, Southeast Nursing MATO, and Southeast Ancillary MATO. Each of these competitive MATOs are at differing points in the acquisition process and will all have different performance start dates so as to stagger transitioning services. None of these competitive MATOs will be in place prior to the expiration of the Gulf Coast Medical MATO and therefore, bridge contracts are necessary to continue the existing physician, allied health, nursing, technologist, technician and assistant services currently being provided on the MATO as well as to capture any new requirements that precipitate during the bridge period in anticipation of the competitive, long-term procurements.

There are currently no MATO contracts in place that contain sufficient hours for all current and forecasted quantities in the Southeast United States. It is the intent of this office to issue a set of bridge contracts with a nine-month period of performance of 04 May 2014 – 31 January 2015. Within this nine-month period of performance, task orders will be issued with base period end dates that will align with the start date of the respective market segmented MATO and will also include an option period to extend the period of performance through 31 January 2015 should additional delays arise. It is anticipated that nursing quantities will have a five-month base period through 30 September 2014 and a four-month option period extending services through 31 January 2015; physician quantities will have a seven-month base period through 30 November 2014 and a two-month option period extending services through 31 January 2015;

and ancillary quantities through 31 January 2015 with no inclusion of an option period.

During the procurement of each of the market segmented requirements, delays have been experienced which has led to the need for bridge contracts to mitigate the risk of a lapse of services. The plan of action and milestones contained in the long term, competitive procurements had original start dates of 04 May 2014. While obtaining approvals of pre-solicitation and solicitation documentation, the milestones originally established were not met due to a delay in obtaining the required approvals from higher levels of authority. Personal services contracts are unique and highly specialized requirements, which necessitated a longer review period thus impacting the planned timeline for award. Given the significant lead time required in the procurement of a MATO Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract, the acquisitions cannot sustain such delays without the need to adjust the milestones and award schedule.

Gulf Coast MATO Bridge Contracts

The revised milestones project an anticipated award date of 01 April 2014 for the Southeast Nursing MATO; 01 May 2014 for the Southeast Physician MATO and 01 June 2014 for the Southeast Ancillary MATO. Traditionally, the milestones have incorporated 120 days for “start-up” of services, which included both the competitive ordering process as well as the onboarding process. Recent IDIQ awards with this type of “start-up” allowance have reflected the need for additional time because the onboarding process requires 120 days on its own in many cases. Onboarding time includes time for the contractor to assemble candidate packages and the Government to credentialing/privileging candidates as well as complete security requirements/background investigations prior to receipt of services. The revised milestones include an additional 60 days which will enable the competitive ordering process to occur without infringing necessary time to complete the onboarding process. The nine-month bridge period of performance provides sufficient time to ensure the new competitive procurements have appropriate timetables to evaluate proposals, award contracts, issue subsequent task orders, and to efficiently transition current services from the expiring vehicles.

Considering no other MATO contracts are in place to accommodate the current requirements of the Gulf Coast Medical MATO, the eight contractors identified in paragraph 2 above are in the best position to continue fulfilling existing requirements as well as any new requirements that precipitate during the bridge period. Contract Action Reports for the resulting contracts will be coded to reflect accurate business size status when awards are issued. Should new requirements precipitate during the bridge period, Task Order Proposal Requests (TOPRs) will be issued subject to FAR 16.5 – Fair Opportunity for Consideration to all eligible contractors holding a bridge contract. The Contracting Officer reserves the right to request any contract company to verify its business size for competitive task orders and the Contracting Officer also reserves the right to not award a competitive task order to any contract company that no longer reflects a small business size status, since the referenced contracts were initially awarded via a small-business set-aside MATO.

Without skilled physician, allied health, technologist, technician and assistant services, the MTFs served by these contracts will not be able to deliver the total scope of care required for them to meet mission requirements. The MTF will need to refer patients out to the Tricare network at a greater cost to the Government. Most importantly, access to care will be delayed, particularly to the Wounded Warriors who depend on the MTFs covered by these contracts for their care. In order to meet known mission requirements (delivering the current scope and level of care) and allowing for the possibility of additional contract requirements that arise through the ordering period, the bridge contracts will have an estimated aggregate value of $28M between both FY14 funds for the base periods and FY15 funds for the option periods.

The total estimated dollar value of the acquisition is $27,853,037.32.

Appropriations:

General Defense Health Program (DHP) Wounded, Ill and Injured (WII) Overseas Contingency Operations (OCO) Psychological health/Traumatic Brain Injury (PH/TBI) Medical Home Port (MHP)

4. Statutory Authority Permitting Other Than Full and Open Competition.

10 U.S.C. 2304(c) (1): Only one responsible source or only a limited number of responsible sources

5. Rationale Justifying Use of Cited Statutory Authority.

CasePro, Catalyst, Cherokee, Chesapeake, OMV, PPDG, Saratoga and TCMP already have personnel in place to continue providing health care services during the proposed nine-month period of performance.

No other contractors would be able to recruit, submit employee packages and immunization forms, obtain credentialing (as necessary), complete orientation and have their employees in place in order to avoid a lapse in service.

Gulf Coast MATO Bridge Contracts

Due to the expiration of the FY2009 Gulf Coast Medical MATO, bridge contracts are proposed. This action is required to establish stop-gap measures to provide the required services to meet the existing missions of all affected activities. The Acquisition Strategies for the competitive Southeast Nursing MATO, Southeast Physician MATO and Southeast Ancillary MATO requirements have been approved by all required levels and are currently at varying stages in the acquisition process.

CasePro, Catalyst, Cherokee, Chesapeake, OMV, PPDG, Saratoga and TCMP are the only known sources that are able to meet this short-timeframe requirement. There are no known performance issues with any of the referenced contractors that would prevent them from obtaining a bridge contract. However, if performance issues arise during the bridge period, the contracting officer reserves the right to compete the services among remaining contractors.

6. Description of Efforts Made to Solicit Offers from as Many Offerors as Practicable.

Upon approval of this Class J&A, an announcement will be published on Federal Business Opportunities (FedBizOpps) pursuant to Part 5 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation indicating the Government’s intent to award contracts on a sole source basis to CasePro, Catalyst, Cherokee, Chesapeake, OMV, PPDG, Saratoga and TCMP.

7. Determination of Fair and Reasonable Cost.

The prices for the services currently being provided on the Gulf Coast Medical MATO were determined to be fair and reasonable. The contracting officer will use a procedure similar to that used to negotiate logical follow-on task orders in order to assure a fair and reasonable price for these services is obtained. In the event this process fails to produce acceptable negotiated prices, limited competition between the eight MATO contract holders will be used to ensure that the requirements under the bridge contracts will be awarded at fair and reasonable prices.

8. Actions to Remove Barriers to Future Competition.

The services that will be issued under the bridge contracts will be the existing requirements currently in place on the FY2009 Gulf Coast Medical MATO. Upon award of the new market segmented MATOs known as Southeast Nursing MATO, Southeast Physician MATO and Southeast Ancillary MATO, all requirements will be competed among the successful contractors on the respective market segmented vehicle.