Q501--501- Emergency Anesthesiologists Notice of Sole Source Award

Request for Sole Source Justification >SAT

GSAR 538.7104-3 Sole Source Justification Page 1 of 4

Acquisition ID#: 36C262-26-AP-3811

SOLE SOURCE JUSTIFICATION

ORDER >SAT

GSAR PART 538.7104-3

Acquisition Plan Action ID: 36C262-26-AP-3811

Verbal Approval Date: 03/04/2026

Contract Award Date: 03/04/2026

(1) Contracting Activity: Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Veterans Integrated Services Network (VISN) 22, New Mexico VA Healthcare System (NMVAHCS), was the requiring activity. This acquisition was executed by the Network Contracting Office (NCO) 22. The Purchase Requisition (PR) number was 501-26-2-037-0043.

(2) Description of Action: This acquisition was conducted under the authority of the Multiple-Award Schedule Program (41 U.S.C. 152(3) and 40 U.S.C. 501). This procurement was a new requirement for anesthesiologist staffing.

Order against Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) Contract Number: 36F79725D0182

Name of Proposed Contractor:

Wander Staffing LLC

Street Address:

3821 Juniper Terrance, Ste 207

City, State, Zip:

Austin, TX 78738

Phone:

253-579-7300

(3) Description of Supplies or Services:

The New Mexico VA Healthcare System (NMVAHCS) required three (3) additional Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) anesthesiologists while a new long-term contract is being solicited. The anesthesiology service is critical to support Operating Room (OR) and non-OR procedures. Lack of staffing limits the ability to provide surgical services and to assist with non-operating rooms at the New Mexico VA Healthcare System (NMVAHCS). Adequate staffing was needed to avoid the need to send patients to Community Care. In addition, as the local hospitals are usually operating at full capacity and unable to accommodate transfers or additional patient load, there are not enough local resources to accommodate veterans if they are referred to community care, and they may need to be sent out of the state. These services are authorized under Title 38 United States Code (USC) 8153 and VA Directive 1663.

The period of performance for this acquisition is six months. The period of performance is 03/06/2026 through 09/05/2026. The estimated cost is $1,553,354.40.

(4) Identify the Authority and Supporting Rationale (see below and if applicable, a demonstration of the proposed contractor s unique qualifications to provide the required supply or service.)

An urgent and compelling need exists and following the ordering procedures would result in unacceptable delays: Currently, there were not enough anesthesiologists at the NMVAHCS to keep the OR open, affecting patient care. Finding qualified staff in the New Mexico area can be challenging and may take up to 90 days after award before credentialing can begin. The awarded vendor, Wander Staffing, was able to provide quality candidates to begin credentialing immediately, and they have already been onboarded. Initiating a new competition for a short-term requirement would have caused delays that would directly affect Veteran care.

Only one source is capable of providing the supplies or services required at the level of quality required because the supplies or services are unique or highly specialized;

In the interest of economy and efficiency, the new work is a logical follow-on to an original Federal Supply Schedule order provided that the original order was placed in accordance with the applicable Federal Supply Schedule ordering procedures. The original order must not have been previously issued under sole source or limited source procedures.

Items peculiar to one manufacturer:

A patent, copyright or proprietary data limits competition. The proprietary data is:

These are direct replacements parts/components for existing equipment.

The material/service must be compatible in all aspects (form, fit and function) with existing systems presently installed/performing.

(5) Describe Why You Believe the Order Represents the Best Value to aid the contracting officer in making this best value determination: The General Services Administration (GSA) has already determined the prices of supplies and fixed-price services, and rates for services offered at hourly rates, under schedule contracts to be fair and reasonable. The rate of $497.87 per hour is consistent with their price schedule and is also less than the current rate of $511.00 being paid to Aspire-Luke JV LLC, who are providing the same services to NMVAHCS currently.

(6) Describe the Market Research Conducted among schedule holders and the results or a statement of the reason market research was not conducted. Limited market research was conducted for this emergency procurement. A request of information was placed on GSA eBuy from 2/20/2026 2/23/2026 to find interested vendors capable of providing the services immediately. The RFI received six (6) responses; two (2) from large businesses, three (3) from small businesses and one (1) from an SDVOSB vendor. The SDVOSB vendor, Wander Staffing, was contacted to determine if they could provide candidates to meet the needs of the NMVAHCS. Four (4) candidates were provided by Wander Staffing and three (3) were chosen to fulfill the requirement.

A search through the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), Dynamic Small Business search tool (https://search.certifications.sba.gov), using the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code 561230 and using keyword anesthesiologist , resulted in 17 SDVOSB vendors who could potentially provide the services, including Wander Staffing.

(7) Any Other Facts Supporting the Justification: Currently, there are two (2) Locum Anesthesiologists on contract with Aspire-Luke JV LLC that goes through 09/02/2026, but it cannot fulfill the needs of the NMVAHCS. Due to retirements and resignations in the last year, NMVAHCS has lost three (3) full time Anesthesiologists and two (2) part time Anesthesiologist. Resignation notices from two (2) more Anesthesiologist who will be leaving in the next few months were also just received. This leaves the service down to zero (0) Anesthesiologists, which is over a 50% vacancy rate.

(8) A Statement of the Actions, if any, the agency may take to remove or overcome any barriers that led to the restricted consideration before any subsequent acquisition for the supplies or services is made: The VA is actively working to competitively award a long-term contract to begin September 6, 2026. This requirement is a temporary solution to maintain care until that award is finalized.

(9) Requirements Certification: I certify that the requirement outlined in this justification is a Bona Fide Need of the Department of Veterans Affairs and that the supporting data under my cognizance, which are included in the justification, are accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge. I understand that processing of this sole source justification restricts consideration of Federal Supply Schedule contractors to fewer than the number required by GSAR 538.7104-3 (b).

_____________________

Dr. Gurujot S. Khalsa

Department of Veterans Affairs, NMVAHCS

Deputy Chief of Staff

(10) Approvals in accordance with the GSAR Part 506.3 OFOC :

Contracting Officer Certification (required): I certify that the foregoing justification is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

___________________________

Danielle Trudeau

Network Contracting Office 22

Contracting Officer

One Level Above the Contracting Officer (Required over SAT but not exceeding $900K): I certify the justification meets requirements for other than full and open competition.

___________________________

Jarrod Washington

Network Contracting Office 22

Contracting Officer, Division Chief, HCR

Director of Contracting Review and Approval: I approve the justification for other than full and open competition for HCA review and approval.

___________________________

Sabrina J. Smith

Network Contracting Office 22

Director of Contracting

VHA RPO HCA Review and Approval: I have reviewed the foregoing justification and find it to be complete and accurate to the best of my knowledge and belief and recommend approval (if over $90 million) or approve ($900K to $90 million) for other than full and open competition.

__________________________

Curtis M. Jordan

Executive Director, Regional Procurement Office West

Head of Contracting Activity (HCA) Awarded contract 36F79725D0182 to WANDER STAFFING LLC for 1553354.40000000 on 2026-03-04.