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Request for Information Mobile X-Ray and Ultrasound Imaging for Clinics This is a Request for Information. This is NOT a solicitation for proposals, proposal abstracts, or quotations. The purpose of t... Request for Information Mobile X-Ray and Ultrasound Imaging for Clinics This is a Request for Information. This is NOT a solicitation for proposals, proposal abstracts, or quotations. The purpose of this notice is to obtain information regarding the availability and capability of all qualified sources to perform a potential requirement. Services Required: The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Mt. Home VAMC and surrounding area clinics have a need for Mobile X-Ray and Ultrasound Imaging. Purpose and Objectives: Your responses to the information requested will assist the Government in determining the appropriate acquisition method. Projected NAICS Code: 621512 and sized standard is $19.0 Million. NOTE: Respondent claiming SDVOSB and VOSB status must be registered and verified in SBA VetCert. Additionally, all Offerors responding to a solicitation must have an active registration in the System for Award Management (SAM) at the time of quote submission. Anticipated Period of Performance: Services are needed October 1, 2024. RFI QUESTIONNAIRE Company Name ___________________________________________ POC ___________________________________________ Phone Number ___________________________________________ Email Address ___________________________________________ UEI ___________________________________________ 1. Is your firm considered a Small Business? The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code is tentatively 621512; the small business size standard for this NAICS code is $19.0 Million. A size standard, which is usually stated in number of employees or average annual receipts, represents the largest size that a business (including its subsidiaries and affiliates) may be to remain classified as a small business for Small Business Administration and federal contracting programs. The definition of "small" varies by industry. Is your business considered any of the following? [ ] yes [ ] no Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB)** [ ] yes [ ] no Veteran Owned Small Business (VOSB)** [ ] yes [ ] no Historic Underutilized Business Zone (HUBZONE) [ ] yes [ ] no Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB) [ ] yes [ ] no Woman Owned Small Business (WOSB) [ ] yes [ ] no Small Business (SB) If you are a Small Business, are you able to comply with FAR 52.219-14 Limitations on Subcontracting? [ ] yes [ ] no 2. Does your firm have an active registration in the System for Award Management (SAM)? [ ] yes [ ] no 3. Have you provided Mobile X-Ray and Ultrasound Imaging to a Federal Agency in the past? If so, please list experience. 4. Do you have X-Ray and Ultrasound Technicians who are available to provide these services? Please provide details, to include how many available providers, their location, etc. 5. What type and size of vehicle will be required to provide this mobile service? 6. How long would it take to procure and/or assemble the necessary equipment needed to meet this requirement after award? 7. Provide any additional feedback that you feel is relevant (i.e., problems or any other issues experienced with similar contracts). Note: Do not include proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information in responses. Please e-mail your questionnaire response with the above information to Christina Curley (christina.curley@va.gov) with the subject line "Request for Information: Mobile X-Ray and Ultrasound Imaging for Clinics by 10:00am CT on May 20, 2024. Disclaimer and Important Notes. This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in response. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. Any organization responding to this notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed to allow the Government to determine the organization s qualifications to perform the work. Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. After a review of the responses received, a pre-solicitation synopsis and solicitation may be published to the System for Award Management. However, responses to this notice will not be considered adequate responses to a solicitation. General Information Contract Opportunity Type:Â Sources Sought (Original) All Dates/Times are:Â (UTC-10:00) CENTRAL TIME, CHICAGO, USA Original Published Date:Â April 24, 2024 Original Response Date:Â May 20,2024; 10:00 am CT Agency: Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Network Contracting Office 9 (NCO 9) For the James H. Quillen VAMC (JHQVAMC) Classification Original Set Aside: Unrestricted Product Service Code:Â Q522 MEDICAL DIAGNOSTIC IMAGING NAICS Code: 621512 and size standard $19.0 Million Place of Performance: Mt. Home VAMC and surrounding area clinics Description This Request for Information (RFI) / Sources Sought (SS) Notice is for market research, information, and planning purposes only and shall not be construed as a solicitation or as an obligation on the part of VA or the James H. Quillen VA Medical Center. This is NOT a solicitation for proposals, proposal abstracts or quotations. The purpose is to obtain information regarding the availability and capability of all qualified sources to perform a potential requirement. This is a new requirement for Mobile X-Ray and Ultrasound Services. Services are to be provided to 10 rural Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs) in the Mountain Home VA catchment area. The contractor shall provide all resources and equipment necessary to provide these services. A two-week period is being given to respond to potential contractor questions. If you are interested and have questions, please submit your questions via e-mail to christina.curley@va.gov by 10:00 am on May 9, 2024. Questions will be answered via an amendment to this Sources Sought Notice. PERFORMANCE WORK STATEMENT General Information Introduction and Overview VISN 9, Mountain Home VAMC, requires contractual services to provide Mobile Imaging services onsite at the Corner of Sydney and Lamont St., Mountain Home, Tennessee and/or Downtown West Outpatient Center, Knoxville, TN and/or Mountain Home affiliate Community Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC). See attachment A for list of all potential areas of service. Mobile imaging services includes a primary non-18 wheeled trailer/coach containing radiographic x-ray and ultrasound unit with option for the secondary to be 18 wheeled if shortest unit available close to length as non-18 wheeled vehicle in order to service smaller CBOC locations. Vehicle platform for this contract is to utilize a mobile platform that is the smallest possible to ensure reliability and travel in winter weather conditions. The targeted platforms include sprinter and box. Mobile vehicle will transport equipment and personnel to multiple locations on a rotating schedule. Radiographic x-ray equipment will be diagnostic x-ray unit to include chest board, table bucky, overhead railing, X-ray generator and all other equipment to be fully operational. Ultrasound unit will be full diagnostic system to perform all ultrasound exams on all body habitus. Ultrasound unit will have the ability to acquire images within the coach and/or transported into a government provided space to perform ultrasound examinations. All acquired images will be transmitted in real-time electronically with contractor supplied solution. Government will have option to operate with government qualified technologists or government may request contractor to supply qualified technologist staffing. The Contractor shall provide all labor, materials, equipment, maintenance, and repair of all Contractor-furnished equipment (including the mobile vehicle unit). Contractor shall be responsible to always maintain all the equipment in good working order and shall reimburse the VAMC for lost time, which may result from defective workmanship or equipment failure. Services shall be performed as listed in the Schedule of Pricing. Contractor responsibilities summary but to include all items within this contract and requirements to be fully operational as a vehicle and as imaging units. Contractor shall provide all personnel, transportation, and equipment. Services shall be performed by Certified Technologists Contractor shall provide a mobile service solution that shall include a state-of-the-art fixed x-ray unit in a suitable automobile. Shall provide state-of-the-art ultrasound unit that shall be transported (properly secured_ in the same automobile unit). Once on site, the ultrasound unit shall be transported inside government facility. Contractor shall provide one tech each for ultrasound and x-ray in addition to a driver. Driver is at the discretion of the contractor. This driver position is not a mandate and depends on the CDL rating of the coach vehicle as the technologists may be able to drive based on size. All patients scheduled and/or added on will be scanned by the contractor staff and/or government staff with all digital images transferred to VA Picture Archiving Communication System (PACS). Technologist will verify image transfer on all exams and complete all requirement work to bring exam to completion. Supplies Contractor shall solely be responsible for the procurement, receipt, dispensing, administration and safekeeping of all supplies defined herein. These supplies include items for maintaining equipment, patient positioning, computer systems, and any other items required to operate equipment and perform exams. Term of the Contract The resulting contract shall be effective for a base period of one year from date of award plus nine (9) one-year option periods, renewable at the Government s discretion. This contract is subject to the availability of VAMC funds; no service shall be performed after end of contract term, unless authorized by the Administrative Contracting Officer. Contractor s Furnished Equipment Equipment shall include, but not be limited to, a Contractor-furnished, fully equipped, non-18 wheeled vehicle/coach, housing a fully diagnostic x-ray unit with table and upright chest board, not a portable x-ray unit, and a fully diagnostic ultrasound, non-laptop, unit that can be wheeled into on-site location. Mobile x-ray imaging services will be performed on a mobile unit that meets facility approval (documentation of proposed units to be provided with bid). Ultrasound imaging unit must meet facility approval. Equipment specifications will include year, manufacturer, model number, and make of all pertinent information. All equipment used will be FDA approved imaging equipment. The entire offering of a Mobile Radiology services shall meet all local, state, federal, industry, JCAHO, NEC, NFPA, VA, OSHA and other regulatory standards internal and external for which the VAMC is currently accountable and will be kept current with all federal and state regulations. System Capability Requirements Contractor shall provide an on-site Mobile Ultrasound and x-ray unit that is a full system in accordance with the terms and conditions of this contract. The unit shall have the ability to perform all general x-rays and ultrasound exams. Mobile Unit Capabilities and Requirements The mobile unit must have the following: Hardware and software to support fully diagnostic uncompressed images to include compatible post processing advanced imaging. FIPS 140-2 compliant on all systems directly interfacing with government network. Ability to create, store and export DICOM, JPEG and MPEG file formats. DICOM 3.0 network capability for export of images within VAMC. Transport of images will be VA-supplied network infrastructure. The mobile unit shall be equipped with a CD-R burner for a backup to transfer data and to burn disc for patients on request. The mobile unit shall provide sub space sufficient to allow patient to undress/dress in private. The mobile unit shall provide the space sufficient and the appropriate equipment for performing CPR, if necessary. The mobile unit will require network connection for government furnished computer to be utilized by technologists to complete all government requirements for exam completion. Contractor shall provide network connection solution for transferring of images to VA network that meets all security requirements. Provide solution/s and/or options with proposal for bid. Mobile Unit Accessories The following accessory equipment shall be provided by the Contractor: Handicap accessibility Intercom system between the control room and the scanning room The mobile unit shall provide all equipment compatible with mobile unit, e.g. pads, sponges, patient moving accessories, wheelchair, and etc. Equipment Specifications The following minimum performance characteristics of the equipment are required: The imaging equipment shall provide images with consistently high technical quality to be assessed by VA-employed experts. Poor image quality will be considered non-performance under this contract and must be remedied within 10 days of notification or incur default. The imaging equipment shall be capable of acquiring images to meet all protocols to include dual energy chest. The imaging equipment shall be capable of acquiring images and all post processing requirements to deliver high quality diagnostic images. Contractor shall provide generator for self-contained power to fully operate entire coach and all equipment within, possibly for extended periods of time. The Ultrasound unit shall have: All ultrasound transducers to perform all ultrasound exams to include all body habitus. The mobile imaging unit shall be ready for use regardless of outside environmental conditions, and shall adhere to the following: The mobile unit shall maintain a temperature to assure proper operation of equipment without frequent calibration and provide for patient comfort. The mobile unit and imaging equipment shall meet all federal, state, fire and safety requirements. The mobile unit shall be equipped with outlet jack s connections capable of transmitting data and voice through Government-provided category five (5) and dual power phone cable. The mobile unit shall be equipped with secured landline and wireless technology that will allow for transmission of images. Contractor shall provide full solution within proposal. Pedestal power and landline network will not be provided by government due to separate existing building lease contract restraints. Contractor may work independently with building owner to establish pedestal power and landline at contractor expense. Please note each location is unique environment and all have different building owners. The imaging equipment shall support DICOM Modality Worklist (DMWL) for future use and shall be able to export DICOM images to at least one destination. The imaging systems must be on the VistA Imaging Approved DICOM Modality Interface List. Equipment Maintenance / Repairs Equipment provided shall be always in good working order in order to provide high quality scans required under this contract. Contractor shall be completely responsible for the preventive maintenance, emergency and general repairs, safety, cleaning, and upkeep of all equipment furnished by the Contractor. Preventative maintenance/repairs on the mobile unit and all associated equipment shall be performed in accordance with the Conformance Standards and manufacturer s recommendations. If the equipment should fail during normal working hours, every effort should be taken in order to reduce equipment downtime by expediting repairs. Exams canceled or postponed due to failure of services provided by the contractor must be rescheduled and performed by the Contractor at the original imaging site within seven (7) calendar days of the initial appointment during the normal operating hours of the clinic services. If it is not possible to reschedule the patient within seven (7) calendar days and the VAMC must make alternate arrangement to have the patient sent to another local facility for the tests, the Contractor shall bear the costs associated with such re-procurement. The VAMC will provide the Contractor with an itemized list of costs as a result of any service failure and cost will be deducted from the Contractor s invoice for the period involved. Contractor shall be responsible for the overall housekeeping of the unit including but not limited to removal and proper disposal of all debris daily or as often as necessary to maintain a sanitized and neat environment in accordance with the Conformance Standards. Contractor shall be responsible for all equipment while on VAMC premises. At least one of Contractor s personnel must be present during working hours while the equipment is located on the VAMC campus. The VAMC will not be held responsible for any loss or damage to the Contractor s property, which may be vandalized or damaged, including the mobile unit while on site. Contractor shall maintain property insurance on all equipment throughout the duration of the contract and the successful Contractor shall provide proof of insurance as required herein. Contractor Key Personnel Qualifications and Responsibilities A proposal will be considered only from offerors who are regularly established in the business called for, who are financially responsible and have the necessary equipment and personnel to furnish service in the volume required for all items under this solicitation. The successful Contractor shall meet all Federal, State and Local codes and requirements for the operation of this service and equipment provided. Employees authorized by the Contractor to perform services under this specification and any resulting contract, (including all Technologists) shall be licensed and/or registered in a State, Territory or Commonwealth of the United States or the District of Columbia. Contractor shall provide with his or her signed proposal, a description of all personnel, who will be providing services under this RFP. These personnel shall include, but not be limited to the technologists, support and driver staff who may visit a medical center as part of their duties under this contract or have access to confidential personal patient information. In addition, the technologists shall be certified in the specific modality being performed as defined herein. The Contractor shall provide documentation of training and competency of all proposed technologists in all of the following areas: Ultrasound Imaging General Radiology Imaging Operation of mobile unit/s and software applications License to operate motorized vehicle Contractor Key Personnel Qualifications and Responsibilities Contractor shall provide all required modality certified Technologists and any qualified support staff (as patient volume requires) necessary to provide services for the VAMC patients unless government opts to utilize qualified government staff. If additional technologists are required to increase services under this contract, the Contractor shall be requested to provide a written description of those personnel to the Administrative Contracting Officer for approval and security clearance (background investigation) prior to the commencement of any additional services. The Contractor is required to develop and maintain the following documents for each Contractor employee working on the contract: credentials and qualifications for the job; a current competence assessment checklist (an assessment of knowledge, skills, abilities and behaviors required to perform a job correctly and skillfully; including knowledge and skills required to provide care for certain patient populations, as appropriate.); a current performance evaluation supporting ability of the Contractor employee to successfully perform the work required in this solicitation; and listing of relevant continuing education for the last two (2) years. The Contractor will provide current copies of these records at the time of contract award and annually on the anniversary date of contract award to the Contracting Officer s Representative (COR), or upon request, for each Contractor employee working on the contract. Qualifications of personnel are subject to review and final approval by the facility Chief of Staff and Chief of Radiology. Personnel assigned by the Contractor to perform the services covered by this contract shall be proficient in written and spoken English (38 USC 7402). Contractor s technologists will be required to pull from RIS worklist and/or type patient information into the imaging system computer ensuring that all images are identified with the correct patient information to include full name, social security number, date/accession number and modality type. Contractor s assigned personnel must be computer literate in the type of software and/or hardware associate with their duties. The technologist shall complete training for government supplied software and hardware required for completion of exams performed. Mobile Unit Driver shall be licensed as applicable to operate and drive the mobile vehicle in which the unit is housed. Contractor technical employees shall be CPR BLS certified and are authorized to initiate this life-saving act if necessary. The imaging technologists shall be trained and qualified to identify contraindications to imaging exams. Imaging Technologist shall be responsible to screen patients prior to performing exams to verify the patient s identification, pregnancy status, breastfeeding status, and confirm the procedure to be performed prior to commencement of any services. Disqualification of a patient from the exam must be documented and provided to radiologist and/or COR before the patient leaves the imaging unit. The technologist is responsible for the initial assessment and identification of medical emergencies and initiating the emergency response procedure for patients in their care. The training for this will be a part of initial facility orientation. Technologist shall ensure that all imaging exams shall be acquired and processed per procedures and protocols provided by the facility Radiology physicians. Raw and processed data remain the property of the Government. VA Radiology Physicians will perform interpretations of the examination(s). Unsatisfactory/non-diagnostic examinations shall be re-performed at the discretion of designated Radiology Physician. Certifications / Licensing of Technologist Vendors shall submit with their offer the following documents: Copy of all personnel s current licenses (certification / registration) List of experience of proposed contract employees Competency checklist CPR BLS certificate Additional requirements for Contractor personnel and Contractor operation: Contractor shall provide the VAMC seven (7) day per week telephone access to the mobile company used in performance of this contract. Services provided by the Contractor shall be performed within the policies, procedures and regulations of the VAMC, to include the following Medical Center Memorandums: To be updated before being published. The Contractor's radiation and patient safety policies must meet or exceed the VAMC policies for standards of care. The Contractor s current policies for radiation and patient safety must be included with proposal for review by the VAMC. If policies are found to be less stringent than VAMC policies, Contractor must meet or exceed the VAMC policies for standards of care. Contractor shall meet the safety requirements of posting radiation hazardous signs around the mobile unit and make certain the electrical power cable is under a metal cover, if it crosses the crosswalk. Neither the Contractor nor the contract personnel shall in any way undertake the practice of medicine, render medical opinions or services other than those services required to support the well-being of the patient, or in any way with the patient other than to provide all ancillary and technical services required for the operation of the unit. The Government may evaluate the quality of professional and administrative services provided but retains no control over the medical aspects of services rendered, in accordance with FAR 37.401(b), Non-Personal Health Care Services. Personnel Policy The Contractor shall be responsible for protecting the personnel furnishing services under this contract. To carry out this responsibility, the Contractor shall provide the following for these personnel: Worker s Compensation Professional Liability Insurance Income Tax Withholding Social Security Payments Holiday Pay Health Examinations, including, but not limited to: Tuberculosis Testing Contractor shall provide proof of a negative reaction to Purified Protein Derivative (PPD) testing. A negative chest radiographic report for active tuberculosis shall be provided in cases of positive PPD results. The PPD test shall be repeated annually. Rubella Testing Contractor shall provide proof of immunization for measles, mumps, rubella or a rubella titer of 1.8 or greater. If the titer is less than 1.8, a rubella immunization shall be administered with follow-up documentation to the COR. OIG List of Excluded Individuals / Entities In accordance with The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and the Balanced Budget Act (BBA) of 1977, the Office of Inspector General has established a list of parties and entities excluded from Federal health care programs. Specifically, the listed parties and entities may not receive Federal Health Care program payments due to fraud and/or abuse of the Medicare and Medicaid programs. Therefore, all offerors shall review the OIG List of Excluded Individuals/Entities on the OIG web site at www.hhs.gov/oig to ensure that the proposed candidate(s) and/or firm(s) are not listed. Offerors should note that any excluded individual or entity that submits a claim for reimbursement to a Federal health care program, or causes such a claim to be submitted, may be subject to a Civil Monetary Penalty (CMP) of $10,000 for each item or service furnished during a period that the person or entity was excluded and may also be subject to treble damages for the amount claimed for each item or service. CMP s may also be imposed against health care providers and entities that employ or enter into contracts with excluded individuals or entities to provide items or services to Federal program beneficiaries. By signing the offer, the Contractor certifies that he/she has reviewed the OIG List of Excluded Individuals/Entities and that the proposed candidate(s) and/or firm are not listed as of the date the offer was signed. Tort Claims The Federal Tort Claims Act does not cover Contractor employees. When a Contractor s employee has been identified as a provider in a tort claim, The Contractor employee is responsible for notifying the Contractor s legal counsel and/or insurance carrier. Any settlement or judgment arising from a contractor employee s action or non-action is the responsibility of the Contractor and/or insurance carrier. Supporting Information Schedule Contractor shall perform clinical services up to 10 hours per day on a weekday or weekend to be established independently with the VAMC. Services are based on demand of patient exam volumes and/or limited equipment availability internal to VA. If there is a need to increase the number of days per week in order to accommodate patient services, the Government reserves the right to increase the number of days as noted herein. Contractor will be given at least sixty (60) calendar days notice of the VAMC s intention of increasing the number of days per month for which the Contractor will perform services on site. Additional days periodically may be added to meet backlog of exams with sufficient notice, not to exceed thirty (30) days. Additional days of service will be performed for same daily lease rate or less. Contractor will provide additional services for emergency patient/s during same service date if required for patient care. Overtime charges are not authorized. Schedule rate will be based on 8 hour or 10-hour days of direct clinical care. Start of time and/or QC time will be outside of direct clinical care hours. Unresolved scheduling conflicts will be decided by the Administrative Contracting Officer; the decision made will be final. The Contractor shall be required to confirm the scheduled examinations, by contacting the COR or designee two (2) business days prior to the date of services. Procedures will be established and will be mutually agreed upon between the COR, ACO and the successful Contractor during the post-award orientation. The Contractor, based on the knowledge of their imaging system shall determine a maximum number of patients that may be imaged within a day where the first patient begins at 8:00 a.m. In accordance with the above, vendors shall submit with his/her signed proposal, a proposed schedule based upon the level of expertise of the proposed Contractor personnel. Normal Hours of Operation Contractor personnel shall be available on site to perform exams on patients on the scheduled weekday, excluding Federal holidays. The first exam will start at 8:00 a.m. Unit delivery, setup and daily quality control procedures shall be performed prior to first exam and will not delay the start of the examinations. Contractor and COR shall mutually agree upon a schedule establishing dates and time for the mobile unit with technicians to be present on station. Hours of operation must be approved in advance by the COR. National Holidays and the Weekly Schedule The eleven (11) holidays observed by the Federal Government are New Year s Day, Martin Luther King s Birthday, Washington s Birthday, Memorial Day, Juneteenth, Independence Day, Labor Day, Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas, and any other day specifically declared by the President of the United States to be a national holiday. The Government reserves the right to request an alternate day for performing services to be agreed upon between the COR and the Contractor. Daily Access to the CBOC facilities The Contractor will be responsible for contacting the CBOC office manager at the site of service at the time of arrival. The Contractor will also be responsible for contacting the VA Police at the closing of each workday to ensure that both the building and the data port connections are secured. The location and contact numbers will be provided by the COR to the Contractor following contract award. Commencement of Services Commencement of service date is to be coordinated with the COR. Unit must be ready for patient services no later than 45 days after contract award, unless otherwise agreed to between the Contracting Officer and the Contractor. Inspection and Acceptance The delivery location of the mobile unit site shall be coordinated with the COR; inspection and acceptance of all work performance, reports and other deliverables under this contract shall be performed at the place of delivery. Deliverables will be inspected for content, completeness, and accuracy and conformance to contract requirements by the COR or his/her designee. Inspection will include validation of information or software through the use of automated tools and/or testing of the deliverables, as specified in the contract order. The scope and nature of this testing must be negotiated prior to the contract award and will be sufficiently comprehensive to ensure the completeness, quality and adequacy of all deliverables. Reports, documents, and narrative type deliverables will only be accepted when all discrepancies, errors or other deficiencies identified in writing by the Government have been corrected. Maintenance logs will be made available upon request. Non-Conforming Products or Services Non conforming...