R416--Research Services - Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee Pre-solicitation Notice with Intent to Sole Source

Pre-Solicitation Notice for notice of intent to award a sole source contract. This is not a solicitation. The Department of Veterans Affairs intends to negotiate a sole source contract for a base year plus four (4) option years to the Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC), Research & Development located at 1161 21st Ave S, D3300, Nashville, TN 37232, to provide Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) oversight and ensure animal research is done in compliance with all relevant and applicable governing laws, regulations, and policies for services to the VA Tennessee Valley Healthcare System (TVHS).

This acquisition requires approval by an authorized Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC). The IACUC is responsible for overseeing all aspects of animal care and use programs to ensure compliance with federal regulations, safeguard animal welfare, and support the scientific integrity of approved research projects. TVHS is required to provide professional IACUC oversight and support services to its research community to meet these regulatory and ethical obligations.

The VUMC IACUC is the only center in Tennessee that has the capacity to conduct this work. The inability to use these unique services that only VUMC can provide would be detrimental in terms of cost and the ability to ensure that all research involving animals meets ethical, procedural, and documentation requirements established under applicable federal regulations and VA policy. VUMC is the primary academic affiliate of the VA Tennessee Valley Healthcare System. 38 U.S.C. 8153 allows for sole source awards related to research with VA academic affiliates.

Since the intent is to procure this on a sole source basis, no solicitation will be posted to Contract Opportunities on SAM.gov. The applicable NAICS code is 541940 with a $10 Mil size standard. The PSC is R416. The authority for this action is the Revolutionary FAR Overhaul (RFO) 6.103.5 Authorized or Required by Statute. Interested persons may contact the Contracting Officer via email at annmarie.stewart@va.gov regarding this procurement. The determination to conduct a competitive procurement based on responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Contracting Officer.