6550--Reagents and consumables

The Department of Veterans Affairs Veterans Health Administration Veterans Integrated Service Network 22 (VISN 22) is seeking reagents, consumables, and maintenance services to support infectious disease and oncology testing across eight VA clinical laboratories located in Arizona, California, and New Mexico. The procurement encompasses 19 line items of Cepheid-compatible diagnostic test kits and collection devices for 22 specified assays, including tests for MRSA, C. difficile, carbapenem-resistant enterobacteria, tuberculosis, respiratory pathogens, sexually transmitted infections, and oncology markers. Key contract requirements include providing Cepheid-trained and certified service technicians available Monday through Friday (8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. local time) with 24/7 telephone support and emergency repair response within 24 hours, compliance with VA information security standards (FISMA and NIST), and background investigations for all personnel requiring system access. Pricing will be structured on a cost-per-test basis, and pricing submissions are encouraged though optional during this pre-solicitation phase. Responses to this Request for Information are due by February 19, 2026 at 9:00 AM Pacific Time to Carlos.Magana@va.gov, with solicitation number 36C26226Q0367.

This pre-solicitation notice contains no set-aside designations and does not identify current incumbents or contract award values. The procurement requires approximately 4,319 total units across the 19 line items, with quantities ranging from 2 to 2,200 units per item depending on the specific diagnostic kit. Interested vendors must be authorized manufacturers or distributors of original equipment manufacturer products—remanufactured or gray market items are explicitly prohibited—and must provide authorization letters or OEM documentation to verify their status. Responses must include company information, business size classification (such as SDVOSB, VOSB, HUBZone, or WOSB), confirmation of manufacturer or distributor status, details of any existing federal contracts, and evidence of capability regarding salient characteristics and equal-to items. The relevant NAICS code is 325413 (In-Vitro Diagnostic Substance Manufacturing) with a small business size standard of 1,250 employees, and a formal solicitation announcement will be published at a later date requiring separate submissions from any RFI responses.