Draft Product Description.docx

Inventory Management System for the All-Hazards Emergency Cache Program

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS

Public Health National Program Office

Date: December 10, 2024 Product Description Version Number: 1.0

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION

1. Background:

The Public Health National Program Office (PHNPO) and Emergency Pharmacy Service (Pharmacy Benefits Management) require an integrated Inventory Management System (IMS) to conduct end-to-end tracking, viewing, accountability and analysis of inventory in and related to the PHNPO/EPS All-Hazards Emergency Cache (AHEC) Program facility sites and warehouse(s). The AHEC program, in addition to a limited number of other regional centers, was established to assure VA readiness for local, regional, and national pandemic, terrorism, and natural disaster mass casualty events. The current inventory management system for the AHEC program, for which PHNPO is the lead program office, is inadequate to meet the necessary functionality requirements to assure continuous, high-quality pandemic-, disaster- and climate-readiness. This solution will assure that VA can continue to meet functional, programmatic and regulatory requirements to safely and accurately maintain and replenish the medical countermeasure (MCM) inventory in the AHEC program.

Oversight and management of the AHEC program is a continuous process that includes routine updates to the items or formulary contained in the AHEC, maintenance of adequate levels of unexpired critical supplies and medical countermeasures, and prompt/timely replenishment of products to respond to cache activations, product expiration or damage. Some MCMs in the AHEC program are eligible for product expiration date extensions – through the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) Shelf-Life Extension Program (SLEP), which extends the product expiration dates when appropriate based on FDA testing, or other authorized expiration date extensions – which must be accurately tracked across all AHEC sites for which those products have been distributed. AHEC sites must also receive advanced notification prior to product expiration to facilitate rotation of such products into facility inventory and utilization, and must be alerted of expiring, expired, or recalled products and methods of disposal or reverse distribution. Activation of caches through exercises or real-world events may result in consumption or waste of cache products, and product utilization for Veterans, VA staff, and/or VA’s fourth mission support to Veterans and civilians in emergencies must be able to be tracked in a timely and accurate manner.

In VA Office of Inspector General review of the emergency cache program in 2018 and 2021, findings determined that not all caches were ready to activate if needed, due to expired or missing drugs hindering the readiness of the caches. It was determined that the inventory management system did not have the functionality required to track, report on, and maintain inventory in the AHEC sites.

In addition, there are efforts being made to collaborate and coordinate medical countermeasure stockpiles and preparedness plans with partner federal agencies, such as the Department of Homeland Security, and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) who maintain the U.S. Strategic National Stockpile (SNS). Harmonizing medical countermeasures readiness requires clear visibility and accountability of enterprise-wide countermeasures – including incorporating tracking storage, transfer, deployment and replenishment of complex allocations or separate VA-managed non-VA MCM supplies – within the cache program.

To address the OIG findings, EPS has developed and implemented a manual solution to the issues cited, but a new inventory management system is required to assure optimal operations, up-to-date visibility, and pandemic- and climate-readiness of the AHEC program. This is a request to fulfill these needs with Bitscopic’s Advanced Inventory Management Module (AIM).

This is a Non-IT procurement Item Number 41, Direct Medical Diagnostic or Treatment System (Purchased Commercial Off The Shelf [COTS] Software used for purposes of direct patient care), VA Directive 6008, Appendix A, November 2, 2017.

II: Requirements

The VA requires an integrated Inventory Management System (IMS) to conduct end-to-end tracking, viewing, accountability and analysis of inventory in and related to the PHNPO/EPS All-Hazards Emergency Cache (AHEC) Program facility sites and warehouse(s).

This system must include the following:

1) An Inventory Management System (IMS): This system will equip EPS and Logistics staff with the capability to determine and track necessary products, product quantities, ordering intervals/times, and expiration or reverse distribution timepoints in real-time. It will also support assessments, tracking, and dynamic replenishment across the complete cache enterprise encompassing all facilities/sites, warehouses, and additional locations, ensuring real-time access, visibility, and responsiveness to cache needs.

a) A Product Lifecycle Tracking System:

The IMS must provide comprehensive tracking of products throughout their lifecycle stages and across the EPS-cache network, from point of requisition, ordering and procurement, to receipt in EPS, to EPS storage, to filling, staging, shipment, in-transit, AHEC storage site, to disposal or reverse distribution endpoint. It should document and monitor the flow of inventory to ensure a seamless transition between stages and maintain integrity throughout the supply chain.

b) Advanced Filtering and Reporting Capabilities:

The IMS solution must feature robust filtering options to manage products by location-specific, drug-specific, and inventory/formulary-specific attributes, including: by region, individual site (location attributes); expiration date, lot number, shelf-life expiration program (SLEP) eligibility and critical dates (product attributes); threshold quantity and in-stock levels (inventory attributes); and other attributes determined necessary by EPS to accurately track current status of products and ordering/replenishment needs. These detailed filtering capabilities will enable EPS to precisely track product status and efficiently manage ordering and replenishment requirements, facilitating a proactive approach to inventory management.

i. Example: Capability to create a warehouse replenishment order by a) assessing the current enterprise, expiration dates, SLEP inventory, threshold quantity required; b) producing a “required product order sheet” with total quantity required for each product – accounting for current EPS inventory and replenishment orders – that can be c) transmitted or communicated via existing/required mechanisms to necessary entities to initiate ordering process.

c) Internal and External Integration and Enhanced User Experience:

The new IMS will seamlessly integrate within and be compatible with existing VHA applications, supporting both data entry and retrieval, ensuring both data compatibility and integrity across systems as well as a high-quality user experience.

ii) An intuitive user interface that displays comprehensive EPS/AHEC inventory data, real-time and historical status, and requirements to fit the day-to-day processes as well as audits, queries and reports needed by EPS and PHNPO.

iii) The capability to integrate and synchronize with VHA Veterans Health Information Systems and Technology Architecture (VistA)/BCMA (bar code medication administration) and existing Praedico and PraediAlert public health surveillance systems to facilitate clinical, pharmacy and public health surveillance needs related to AHEC countermeasures, and to enhance the system’s ability to forecast demand more accurately and enable strategic inventory management. These combined data analytics will inform and improve decision-making capabilities, leading to enhanced public health preparedness.

iv) Ability to integrate with external systems critical to inventory management, as delineated by EPS and PHNPO, including barcode scanning systems and related technologies. This integration is necessary to assure streamlined end-to-end processes, through each stage of product life cycle, while updating the IMS in real-time to assure accurate supply chain and inventory understanding and visibility. Additional connectivity and integration to external ordering and procurement systems, as deemed appropriate and necessary per EPS/PHNPO, should be present in the IMS to facility necessary inventory workflow capabilities.

d) Inventory Ordering Process Support: IMS solution must meet functional acceptance criteria outlined by EPS, including but not limited to:

i) -Real-time Inventory Visibility, Alerting and Reporting: Enable users to view real-time stock levels at individual cache sites, within regions, or across the entire EPS enterprise. This will facilitate informed decisions on replenishment or replacement of items based on expiration dates, SLEP failures, or when stock falls below minimum threshold levels or meets other replenishment criteria.

-Automated Alerts and Reporting: Implement an automated alert system that notifies users of replenishment needs based on predefined criteria. Additionally, the system should support ad hoc and scheduled reporting, allowing for flexible and responsive inventory management.

-Pallet configurator application to optimize pallet patterns with a 3D visual rendering to build the most optimal pallet load for transit stability with comprehensive instructions and specifications for assembling and dissembling.

-Storage application to maximize the available warehouse footprint with a 3D visual rendering of product location.

ii) Order Management and Documentation: IMS will provide the following capabilities:

-Order Sheet Generation: Automate the creation of detailed “Order Sheets” for items identified as needing replenishment. These documents will serve as official communication with Logistics to initiate order placement.

-Dynamic Order Sheet Tracking: Develop a system where each Order Sheet is not only a digital document but also a live record within the IMS. It will be viewable and editable, allowing for the tracking of order details (e.g. PO numbers, invoice numbers, partial orders received and remaining, necessary dates, and comprehensive cost accounting) and entry of free-form review and auditing notes.

-SLEP and Expiration Management: Incorporate features to manage SLEP items within the order generation process, including the ability to exclude such items from orders as they undergo SLEP review. The system will also provide advance notifications for SLEP expirations, enabling proactive disposal and/or facility inventory planning.

iii) Enhanced Order Processing Features: IMS solution must support enhanced order processing features to facility and streamline operations, including:

-Annotation and Notation Capabilities: Provide tools for EPS and other designated staff to annotate and make notes on orders, including delivery statuses and partial order fulfillments, thereby strengthening the audit trail and order tracking.

-PO and Manufacturer Assignment: Allow EPS to assign purchase orders and manufacturers upon order confirmation, with the ability to pre-fill item details ahead of delivery, ensuring a streamlined check-in process upon receipt.

e) IMS Compliance with OIG Recommendations: The IMS solution must be in compliance with recommendations from Office of the Inspector General (OIG) to EPS (VA OIG 20-03326-124), ensuring AHEC sites consistently maintain fully-stocked, unexpired inventory at adequate supply levels. Capabilities shall include:

i) Inventory Tracking and Management: Robust tracking and secure maintenance of data across the AHEC inventory enterprise to manage the ordering and replenishment process. This includes capturing critical metrics such as the time required to replenish items at each site, average resupply duration, and compliance rates for each stock item. Utilizing this data, the IMS should enable users to configure alerts, schedule reminder emails, and generate tailored queries. These functions should be designed to operate within predetermined timeframes that anticipate product lot expirations or critical SLEP dates, thus enabling efficient and timely resupply actions for each site.

ii) Remote Access and Acknowledgement Capabilities: The IMS must include a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system to manage communication interactions with facilities and leadership. This remote access feature enables users at AHEC sites to interact with the inventory system from their respective locations. This functionality should allow users to acknowledge the receipt of replenishment orders, confirm the receipt of updated SLEP labels, verify the withdrawal of expired products, and document the completion of replenishment requests following an activation event. Furthermore, the system should offer a task/project management system to coordinate and prioritize tasks, projects, and processes. Including a freeform text option for users to provide additional context or notes related to inventory transactions and updates, ensuring a comprehensive and auditable record of inventory activities.

This is a Non-IT procurement Item Number 41, Direct Medical Diagnostic or Treatment System (Purchased Commercial Off The Shelf [COTS] Software used for purposes of direct patient care), VA Directive 6008, Appendix A, November 2, 2017.

Twelve months of (1) Period of Performance 3/1/2025-2/28/2026 (Base)

Twelve months of (1)

Period of Performance 3/1/2026-2/28/2027 (Option 1)

Twelve months of (1) Period of Performance 3/1/2027-2/28/2028 (Option 2)

2. Type of Contract: Firm Fixed Price (FFP)

3. Period of Performance for Base Year:

3/1/2025-2/28/2026

4. Period of Performance for Option Periods:

3/1/2026-2/28/2027 (Option Year 1) 3/1/2027-2/28/2028 (Option Year 2)

5. Shipping Instructions:

The Contractor shall deliver all software maintenance no later than 30 days from receipt of order. The software maintenance shall run through 12/31/2025.

Inspection: Destination Acceptance: Destination Free on Board (FOB): Destination

Ship To and Mark For:

Mailcode 132 3801 Miranda Avenue Palo Alto, CA 94304

NOTICE OF THE FEDERAL ACCESSIBILITY LAW AFFECTING ALL ELECTRONIC AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PROCUREMENTS (SECTION 508)

a. On August 7, 1998, Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 was amended to require that when Federal departments or agencies develop, procure, maintain, or use Electronic and Information Technology, that they shall ensure it allows Federal employees with disabilities to have access to and use of information and data that is comparable to the access to and use of information and data by other Federal employees. Section 508 required the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (Access Board) to publish standards setting forth a definition of electronic and information technology and the technical and functional criteria for such technology to comply with Section 508. These standards have been developed and published with an effective date of December 21, 2000. Federal departments and agencies shall develop all Electronic and Information Technology requirements to comply with the standards found in 36 CFR 1194.

b. Section 508 – Electronic and Information Technology (EIT) Standards:

The Section 508 standards established by the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (Access Board) are incorporated into, and made part of all VA orders, solicitations and purchase orders developed to procure Electronic and Information Technology (EIT). These standards are found in their entirety at: http://www.section508.gov and http://www.section508.gov/acquisition-regulations. A printed copy of the standards will be supplied upon request.

c. The Contractor shall comply with the technical standards as marked:

X § 1194.21 Software applications and operating systems X § 1194.22 Web-based intranet and internet information and applications X § 1194.23 Telecommunications products X § 1194.24 Video and multimedia products X § 1194.25 Self-contained, closed products X § 1194.26 Desktop and portable computers X § 1194.31 Functional Performance Criteria X § 1194.41 Information, Documentation, and Support

d. The standards do not require the installation of specific accessibility-related software or the attachment of an assistive technology device, but merely require that the EIT be compatible with such software and devices so that it can be made accessible if so required by the agency in the future.

e. Alternatively, offerors may propose products and services that provide equivalent facilitation. Such offers will be considered to have met the provisions of the Access Board standards for the feature or components providing equivalent facilitation. If none of the offers that meet all applicable provisions of the standards could be accepted without imposing an undue burden on the agency or component, or if none of the offerors propose products or services that fully meet all of the applicable Access Board's provisions, those offerors whose products or services meet some of the applicable provisions will be considered eligible for award. Awards will not be made to an offeror meeting all or some of the applicable Access Board provisions if award would impose an undue burden upon the agency.

f. Offerors must submit representation information concerning their products by completing the Voluntary Product Accessibility Template® (VPAT) template at http://www.itic.org/dotAsset/5644ecd2-5024-417f-bc23-a52650f47ef8.doc or http://www.section508.gov/buyaccessible-wizard.

** In order to permit the Government to comply with the requirements of Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, in connection with this Order, Contractor has made available to the Government Voluntary Product Accessibility Templates (VPATs) concerning the degree to which the software licensed by the Government pursuant to this Order supports the Section 508 Accessibility Standards. The Government may request at any time (via email to accessibility@sas.com), and Contractor will provide within seven (7) business days of such request, the current VPATs with respect to any software product licensed by the Government.

Contractor’s sole obligation with regard to the terms of this Section are to provide (i) the aforementioned VPATs and (ii) warranty coverage (as if the VPATs provided hereunder are part of the software documentation) pursuant to Contractor’s software warranty set forth in Section 2.a., SIN 132-33, of GSA Schedule GS-35F-0170K.

INFORMATION SECURITY CONSIDERATIONS:

1. GENERAL (Appendix B)

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

2. 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. Contract personnel who require access to national security programs must have a valid security clearance. National Industrial Security Program (NISP) was established by Executive Order 12829 to ensure that cleared U.S. defense industry contract personnel safeguard the classified information in their possession while performing work on contracts, programs, bids, or research and development efforts. The Department of Veterans Affairs does not have a Memorandum of Agreement with Defense Security Service (DSS). Verification of a Security Clearance must be processed through the Special Security Officer located in the Planning and National Security Service within the Office of Operations, Security, and Preparedness.

d. Custom software development and outsourced operations must be located in the U.S. to the maximum extent practical. If such services are proposed to be performed abroad and are not disallowed by other VA policy or mandates, the contractor/subcontractor must state where all non-U.S. services are provided and detail a security plan, deemed to be acceptable by VA, specifically to address mitigation of the resulting problems of communication, control, data protection, and so forth. Location within the U.S. may be an evaluation factor.

e. 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.

3. 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 140-2 validated.

i. The contractor/subcontractor’s firewall and Web services security controls, if applicable, shall meet or exceed VA’s minimum requirements. VA Configuration Guidelines are available upon request.

j. 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.

k. 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.

l. For service that involves the storage, generating, transmitting, or exchanging of VA sensitive information but does not require C&A or an MOU-ISA for system interconnection, the contractor/subcontractor must complete a Contractor Security Control Assessment (CSCA) on a yearly basis and provide it to the COR.

6. 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.

7. 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 the VA to forgo collection of liquidated damages in the event the contractor provides payment of actual damages in the 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.

9. 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 Cyber 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.

Any/all VA Sensitive Information that EIS technicians/representatives are exposed to in the course of performing contracted services will not be further disclosed, nor recorded in any matter or form, IAW the Privacy Act of 1974, 5 U.S.C. 552a, and the Computer Security Act of 1987, Public Law 100-235. It is understood that to properly diagnose any SAS software issue or problems, Contractor's technicians/ representatives may need to view actual, live VA data containing VA Sensitive Information via a WebEx or other remote connection. However, Contractor's technician/representatives will not have direct access to any VA systems or information.

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