hca signed ssj_Redacted.pdf

Acquisition ID#: 36C244-26-AP-0367 Page 1 of 6

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS

SOLE SOURCE JUSTIFICATION

Acquisition Plan Action ID: 36C244-26-AP-0367

1. Contracting Activity:

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN) 04, Network Contracting Office (NCO) 4, Commodities 1 in support of multiple facilities: Philadelphia, Lebanon, Coatesville, and Wilmington VA Medical Centers.

PR: N/A Planned Indefinite-Delivery Indefinite-Quantity (IDIQ) Contract. Funding to be provided with resulting task orders.

2. Nature and/or Description of the Action Being Processed:

This procurement is for Durable Medical Equipment (DME). Delivery, installation, set-up, instruction, repair, and pick-up services to Veteran beneficiaries' homes or place of residence, serviced by VA Medical Centers. This includes all catchment area counties located within the geographic areas of the Philadelphia, Lebanon, Coatesville, and Wilmington VA Medical Centers to be provided in conjunction with VISN- d by a Joint Commission certified Contractor and meet all Joint Commission Standards or equivalent standards for the services performed.

This procurement is intended to be a single-award IDIQ contract using Firm-Fixed Price (FFP) with tasks to be ordered as needed. The intended IDIQ ordering period is 12 months. This action is a bridge contract to keep in place critical services for Veteran care, and to ensure there is no disruption in services that could negatively impact Veteran care. Contract pricing will be determined fair and reasonable prior to award.

These services are currently being obtained through the current contract 36C24420D0067 which expires on October 31, 2025.

3. :

The resulting bridge contract will establish an ordering vehicle to deliver, repair, retrieve, install, and/or provide instruction on DME to Veterans from their closest VA Medical Center. DME includes medical equipment such as hospital beds with side rails, mattresses and specialty mattresses, medical trapeze equipment, patient lifts and lift accessories, bathroom safety aids, feeding pumps, suction machines, IV poles, CCTVs, and mobility assistance devices.

The Contractor is required to be on call 24/7 and capable of providing DME pick-up and delivery, repairs, installation, and instruction services with as little as one hour response time and four-hour completion after initial notification. For non-emergency requests, services must be completed within two business days after receipt of order.

and instructions to the Veteran for each instance of set-up or repair, this is provided verbally, in demonstration of use, and with written materials left with the beneficiary or caregiver. The Contractor is required to review hazards.

Acquisition ID#: 36C244-26-AP-0367 Page 2 of 6

Estimated Ordering Period: 11/01/2025 10/31/2026

4. Statutory Authority Permitting Restricted Competition:

FAR 13.5 Simplified Procedures for Certain Commercial Items. The statutory authority for applying the Simplified Procedures for Commercial Items of FAR 13.5 is 41 U.S.C. § 1901 and is implemented by FAR 13.106-1(b)(2) for restricting competition on this procurement. Competition is restricted on this procurement for the reason below:

Acquisition ID#: 36C244-26-AP-0367 Page 3 of 6

( X ) Only One Responsible Source and No Other Supplies or Services Will Satisfy Agency Requirements

( ) Unusual and Compelling Urgency ( ) Industrial Mobilization, Engineering, Developmental or Research Capability or Expert

Services ( ) International Agreement ( ) Authorized or Required by Statute ( ) National Security ( ) Public Interest

5.

the Use of the Authority Cited Above (applicability of authority):

The proposed sole source acquisition for a DME related services bridge contract performed within the Eastern VISN 04 area will utilize the procedures outlined in FAR Subpart 13.5, which authorizes the use of simplified acquisition procedures for commercial products and services up to $9 Million.

Specifically, FAR 13.501(a)(2) speaks to the requirement for a sole source justification which is the purpose of this document.

Only One Responsible Source (COLUMBIA ANCILLARY SERVICES, INC.) currently meets agency requirements for these services due to the Joint Commission review that is needed before these services can be accepted by the VA. These reviews can take months to get put into place. Due to the timeline of this, no other source will be able to be reviewed in time to prevent a break in service.

This would pose significant risk of undue harm to Veterans receiving care from the VA. Columbia Ancillary Services is already certified by the Joint Commission.

The DME delivery/pickup, transportation, installation, repairs, and training for safe use of equipment provided under this contract is a critical need for the Veteran patients receiving services in their residence. Some of the DME is life sustaining and include the delivery, repair, and training/demonstration of feeding pumps, suction machines, and home IV equipment. Delays even as short as days could likely result in severe impact of patient health. In some cases, the delays of repairs or delivery for these types of DME could result in death. This contract continues to provide similar services for mobility and safety equipment such as wheelchairs, power-wheelchairs, patient lifts, bathroom-safety aids, and hospital beds with side rails. Ensuring Veteran patients have access to functioning mobility and preventive safety equipment has a significant impact on the quality of life and care. The Contractor ensures Veterans receive DME and repairs as needed at any time of the day or night.

The Contract Specialist has also considered the complexity of establishing the previous contract: the initial requirement was solicited under 36C24418R0667 in August 2018 as a SDVOSB set-aside for VISN-wide DME services. Multiple protests were received and dismissed, but no fair and reasonable quotes were received. A second solicitation was issued in December 2019 (notice 36C24420Q0140) for multi facility DME services instead of VISN-Wide but was protested and cancelled. Additional Market Research and acquisition planning was conducted, which resulted in solicitation 36C24420Q0407 and the resulting award of 36C24420D0067 finalized in April 2020. The totality of acquisition planning through award in support of the previous contract exceeded 2 years; therefore, the contracting activity is recommending an 12-month bridge contract after discussing progress and anticipated difficulty in acquisition of the follow-on contract with the requiring activity. The 12-month ordering period should provide sufficient time for the agency to enter into a follow-on contract for DME services using competitive procedures without impacting the quality of Veteran care.

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6. Description of Efforts Made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as deemed practicable:

Due to the urgent need for these continued and un-interrupted DME related services, and the only source considered for this short-term contract is the incumbent contractor, COLUMBIA ANCILLARY SERVICES, INC. It is not feasible to solicit offers from additional sources, to create and implement an evaluation plan for offers, or to perform the other actions involved with transitioning these services to another vendor without a significant break in services thereby resulting in a significant negative impact on Veterans as documented in Section 5. Any other vendor would need to be certified by the Joint Commission, potentially set up in Financial Management System, and complete the transition of services from the incumbent, which by itself is estimated to take up to 90 days in addition to further acquisition planning, soliciting, and evaluation of offers.

While the intended ordering period for this bridge IDIQ contract is 12 months, acquisition planning for the follow-on contract will proceed without delay to facilitate competition in a follow-on contract as soon as feasible. This award will bridge the anticipated gap in DME related services and provide sufficient time to adequately plan, solicit, and award the follow-on. This bridge contract is not expected to impact, delay, or otherwise prevent award of the planned follow-on contract.

7. Determination by the CO that the Anticipated Cost to the Government will be Fair and Reasonable:

The anticipated cost was determined to be fair and reasonable. The estimated total contract price is

The contractor was afforded an opportunity to provide a quote to continue the same services for a 12-month bridge based on updated labor rates.

The Contract Specialist compared the updated pricing with the previous contract (36C24420D0067), which served as the basis for the Independent Government Cost Estimate (IGCE). The previous contract was determined to be fair and reasonable based on competition, market research, and by comparison to the IGCE.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics inflation data, cumulative inflation from October 2020 to August 2025 is 24.42%. The IGCE amount, which used pricing from the previous contract is

Accounting for inflation and updated labor rates, the new total price of the contract is This represents an increase of 22.47%, which remains below the overall inflation rate of 24.42%.

The fair and reasonable price determination is supported by a comparison to the IGCE, a comparison to historical pricing for similar services previously determined to be fair and reasonable, and market research.

8. Description of the Market Research Conducted and the Results:

Search, results show similar services are commercially available, and there is potential for set-asides when planning for the follow-on contract. Although market research for the follow-on contract is ongoing, searches in support of this bridge contract were limited due to the urgency and reasoning documented in Section 5 of this document. Specific market research and methodology are documented within the Market Research Report as well as the eCMS briefcase. In short, the urgency of this requirement and the anticipated severe impact on Veteran care resulting from any lapse in service precludes competition. The follow-on contract will be a competitive procurement, and acquisition planning will continue while the bridge contract is in place.