Inactive

SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE 1. Sources Sought: This is NOT a solicitation for a proposal, proposal abstract, or quote. The purpose of this notice is to obtain information regarding qualified business source... SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE 1. Sources Sought: This is NOT a solicitation for a proposal, proposal abstract, or quote. The purpose of this notice is to obtain information regarding qualified business sources. The responses to the information requested will assist the Government in determining the appropriate acquisition method. 2. Requirement: a. Background. In response to previous Congressional direction, NASEM prepared a protocol in September 2019 for examining harms associated with initiation and discontinuation of opioids in the presence of benzodiazepine treatment. That protocol suggested a trial emulation design where the target population consisted of patients newly initiating pain treatment, with comparisons between those starting opioids to those treated with non-opioid alternatives. The exclusion criteria proposed in that protocol were at odds with VA practice where opioids are prescribed only after other pain therapies have been tried under stepped care practices. Calculations based on VA data indicated that VA had only a fraction of the patients needed to conduct meaningful analyses with the proposed study design. b. Purpose and Objectives. The purpose of this sources sought is to evaluate the effects of opioids and benzodiazepine on all-cause mortality of veterans, including suicide, regardless of whether information relating to such deaths has been reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, pursuant to Section 204(a) of the Hannon Act. c. Project requirements. For every task, the contractor and any of its subcontractors (hereafter referred to solely as contractor) will identify in writing all the necessary tasks and subtasks (if any), associated costs by task, and together with associated sub-milestone dates. All written deliverables will be phrased in layperson language. Statistical and other technical terminology will not be used without providing a glossary of terms. VHA will receive a copy of the report in final form at the end of the contract. The contractor, and any of its subcontractors, conducting the data analyses shall have experience with: Accessing, using, and analyzing VA data sources, including health care, mental health and pharmacy data Data analysis and data analysis tools, including SAS and SQL. Querying, cleaning, managing, and interpreting data Task 1 Management Task 1, Subtask 1 Develop Draft and Final Workplan. Create a detailed draft workplan that will describe in greater detail than the proposal: How the tasks will be completed, the timeline, and the key personnel, including contractors/consultants How the committee will interact with the VHA subject matter experts (task 3) and support the required analyses and report How it will address the considerations described in the background section above. The plan and timeline for initiating the request for data access, which shall be initiated as early as possible upon award. The proposed number, timing, and purpose of each committee meeting. The proposal shall include a preliminary workplan for how the offeror plans to meet the task requirements and deliverable schedule specified. Task 1, Subtask 2 Monthly Reporting and Calls. Provide a progress report to accompany each invoice that describes the work conducted, challenges/barriers and proposed solutions, and any significant deviations to the original workplan. Monthly calls shall also be conducted to provide project updates and discuss any challenges/barriers. Deliverables: Draft and Final Project workplan (Task 1.1) Monthly progress reports/calls (Task 1.2) Task 2 - Project Committee. Task 2, Subtask 1 Committee Establishment. Establish a project committee tasked with completing the requirements under this contract. Any committee which participates in conducting the assessments and formulating the recommendations required by this contract will include at least one former official of the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) with expertise in mental health care and at least two former providers of mental health care in the Veterans Health Administration, at least one of whom has experience in pharmacy practices and pharmacoepidemiology. These individuals shall provide the unique perspective for how care, including mental health care, is delivered in the VA, as well as how data is captured and recorded within the VA. VHA may nominate individuals for consideration. Task 2, Subtask 2 Committee Meetings. Schedule, coordinate, and conduct committee meetings to meet the requirements under this contract. The number, timing, and purpose of each meeting shall be specified in the project workplan (Task 1.1) Deliverables: Committee Establishment (Task 2.1) Committee Meetings (Task 2.2) Task 3 Consultation with VHA subject matter experts The contractor shall consult with VHA subject matter experts and hold a minimum of 2 meetings with VHA subject matter experts. Task 3, Subtask 1 VHA Meeting 1. Hold a meeting between Committee members and staff and VA subject matter experts and VA program office leads from the Office of Research and Development and Office of Mental Health and Suicide Prevention to clarify questions of scope, deliverables, and methodology and help inform development of the Task 4.1 project protocol. Collect information on relevant VA policy changes that may be associated with changes in prescribing practices over time. Obtain suggestions of external reviewers for draft report. Task 3, Subtask 2 VHA Meeting 2. Hold a meeting with VHA subject matter experts to present protocol design to receive input on data elements, data quality and limitations, population numbers and power, and any other barriers to completing design as proposed. Deliverables: VHA Meetings (Task 3.1, 3.2) Task 4 Assessment of the Effects of Opioid and Benzodiazepine Prescribing on Mortality Task 4, Subtask 1 Develop Draft and Final Project Protocol. Subsequent to input from VHA subject matter experts, the research team will develop a comprehensive protocol to assess the mortality impacts of opioid and benzodiazepine prescribing in the period. The protocol shall specify the operational definitions for the analyses, including variables, inclusion/exclusion criteria, comparators, etc. Task 4, Subtask 2 Request and Obtain access to relevant VHA and Medicare data. Analysts working with VA data will obtain appropriate permission as contractors to access data and complete all required onboarding and training. The initial request for data access shall be initiated as early as possible upon award. Task 4, Subtask 3 Draft Report for Technical Review and External Review. Develop draft report and circulate report to at least 5 non-VA external reviewers. Develop draft report for technical review by the VA prior to prepublication. Task 4, Subtask 4 Prepublication Report, Final Report. Submit pre-publication report. The report shall include the study and analytical findings, the context of the findings and current VA practice and policy, overall conclusions, and any recommendations related to current practices in VA prescribing relative to those outlined in current VA policy. Deliverables: Draft and Final Project Protocol (Task 4.1) Request Data Access (Task 4.2) Draft Report for Technical Review (Task 4.3) Prepublication Report (Task 4.4) Final Report (Task 4.4) Performance Monitoring The contractor is responsible for the quality of all work performed. The contractor measures that quality through the contractor s own quality control (QC) program. QC is work output, not workers, and therefore includes all work performed under this contract regardless of whether the work is performed by contractor employees or by subcontractors. The contractor s QC Plan will set forth the staffing and procedures for self-inspecting the quality, timeliness, responsiveness, customer satisfaction, and other performance requirements in the SOW. The VA representative(s) will monitor performance and review performance reports furnished by the contactor through monthly status reports to determine how the contractor is performing against communicated performance objectives. The contractor will be responsible for making required changes in the processes and practices to ensure performance is managed effectively. The Contracting Officer s Representative (COR) will monitor contractor performance as defined in this statement of work. The contracting officer (CO) is responsible for monitoring contact compliance, contract administration, and cost control and for resolving any differences between the observations documented by the COR and the contractor. Any changes to this SOW will be authorized and approved only through written correspondence from the CO. A copy of each change will be kept in a project folder along with all other products of the project. Costs incurred by the contractor through the actions of parties other than the CO will be borne by the contractor. To ensure that the project is being carried out in accordance with the quality standards of the VA, the contractor will submit monthly progress reports as outlined in Task 1.2. Should the VA want further clarification, the contractor will attend ad hoc telephone and/or in-person meetings to provide additional data. d. Capability statement /information sought. If interested please submit a capability statement demonstrating your capacity to complete the requirement outlined above to annmarie.stewart@va.gov not later than (NLT) Wednesday, July 6, 2022, at 3 PM EST. The Capability Statement shall meet the following criteria: Capability statement with general understanding of the industry and current knowledge and subcontract networks that would be used to support the requirement as identified herein. Information should suggest, NACIS Code, provide the socioeconomic status for your company and your subcontractors if you are planning on supporting this service with subcontractors. Submittals furnished will not be returned to the sender. No debriefs will be conducted. Eligibility in participating in a future acquisition does not depend upon a response to this notice. On page one (1) of the Capability Statement, begin by providing your company information as follows: Company name, address, phone number, DUNS number and point of contact (name, phone and e-mail). Capability Statement must include but is not limited to (a) staff expertise, work experience, formal and other training; (b) current in-house capability and capacity to perform the work; (c) prior completed projects of similar nature; (d) corporate experience and management capability; and (e) examples of prior completed Government contracts, references, and other related information. 3. Disclaimer and Important Notes. This Sources Sought does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in your 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. However, responses to this notice will not be considered adequate responses to a solicitation. Confidentiality. No proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information should be included in your response. The Government reserves the right to use any non-proprietary technical information in any resultant solicitation(s).