Virginia Department Of Health

Virginia Department of Health, operating as the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME), is a state government entity that supplies postmortem human brain tissue specimens and diagnostic laboratory supplies to federal research agencies, and receives federal grants to operate forensic pathology training and case investigation programs.

The OCME operates as a federal grant recipient (72% of recent awards as prime recipient) and holds three federal supply contracts with the National Institute of Mental Health for postmortem tissue procurement. As a U.S. state government entity, the OCME does not hold SBA certifications and does not compete under set-asides. Recent federal contract work centers on tissue supply: a $594 thousand firm fixed-price purchase order from NIMH dated September 2022 (ultimate completion September 2027) for postmortem human brain and peripheral tissue specimens supporting the Human Brain Collection Core research program, plus two recent NIMH purchase orders from September 2026 for $75 thousand and $67 thousand respectively, both running through September 2027. In fiscal 2024, the $594 thousand NIMH contract generated $116 thousand in invoiced revenue across 0.1 FTEs at a government-paid rate of $436.48 per hour, with all work self-performed.

The OCME's customer concentration leans heavily toward justice and public-health research agencies. The Bureau of Justice Assistance accounts for 11 awards across its portfolio (39% of recent awards), while the National Institute of Mental Health anchors the contract dollar footprint with three awards valued at $736 thousand combined. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention split across two separate agency entries in the source (7 awards total), and the National Institute of Justice carries two additional awards. Combined, justice and health agencies account for 79% of recent awards.

Federal grant work dominates the OCME's recent volume. The Bureau of Justice Assistance awarded $149 thousand in October 2025 (under CFDA 16.037, the Strengthening the Medical Examiner-Coroner System program) to fund a twelve-month accredited forensic pathology fellowship covering forensic autopsies, external examinations, autopsy report preparation, toxicology interpretation, and scene response — with ultimate completion September 2028. The CDC's National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion funds two cooperative agreements: a $1.4 million maternal mortality review program (awarded September 2024, running through September 2029) and a separate SUID/SDY (Sudden Unexpected Infant Death and Sudden Death in the Young) case registry cooperative agreement (awarded September 2023, running through September 2028). The OCME also received a $1.6 million federal grant from the Bureau of Justice Assistance in October 2023 to investigate approximately 200 unidentified human remains cases statewide through exhumation, forensic anthropology, DNA testing, and forensic genetic genealogy — with completion targeted September 2027. A fifth cooperative agreement with the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control funds the OCME's participation in the National Violent Death Reporting System (awarded September 2022, running through August 2027).

The OCME operates as a sub-recipient on multiple Justice Department grants flowing through the Virginia Department of Criminal Justice Services. Sub-awards in January 2022, May 2023, April 2024, January 2025, and June 2026 document funding for forensic pathologist fellowship training, pathologist assistant hiring to accelerate autopsies, toxicology expediting for suspected drug overdose deaths, and staff continuing education — reflecting the OCME's response to Virginia's 98.5 percent increase in investigated cases between 2013 and 2023 and the national shortage of board-certified forensic pathologists.

Seven awards totaling $736 thousand in combined potential value reach ultimate completion within the next twenty-four months, representing the recompete window. SCI data shows minimal federal service-contract activity above the $150 thousand threshold in recent years, with the $594 thousand NIMH tissue supply contract as the primary SCI-reportable vehicle. The OCME does not engage subcontractors on reported contracts.