Inactive Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) Set-Aside (FAR 19.14)

THIS IS A SOURCE SOUGHT NOTICE / REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) ONLY. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL AND/OR QUOTE. Disclaimer This Sources Sought is issued solely for the purpose identifying potent... THIS IS A SOURCE SOUGHT NOTICE / REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) ONLY. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL AND/OR QUOTE. Disclaimer This Sources Sought is issued solely for the purpose identifying potential sources for a future requirement and does not constitute a solicitation. All information received in response to this notice that is marked as proprietary will be handled accordingly. Responses to this notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. Responders are solely responsible for all expenses associated with responding to this Sources Sought notice. Synopsis This is not a solicitation announcement. This is a Sources Sought synopsis only. The purpose of this is to gain knowledge of potential qualified sources and their size classification relative to NAICS: 561320, Temporary Help Services (Size Standard: $34 million); PSC: Q512-Medical-Optometry. Responses to this Sources Sought synopsis will be used by the Government to make appropriate acquisition decisions and are not considered adequate responses to a potential future solicitation announcement. After reviewing all responses to this synopsis, a solicitation announcement may be published via the Contracting Opportunities website. Responses to this Sources Sought synopsis are not considered adequate responses to the anticipated solicitation announcement. All interested offerors will have to respond to the actual solicitation announcement, in addition to responding to this Sources Sought announcement. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Veterans Integrated Systems Network (VISN) 19 and the Network Contracting Office (NCO) 19 are performing market research to determine if there are sufficient numbers of qualified (1) Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB); (2) Veteran Owned Small Business (VOSB); or (3) Small Business to set aside a Firm-Fixed-Price contract for Optometry services. The contractor shall provide all key personnel for 0.6 FTE (1248 hours) Optometrist and 0.6 FTE (1248 hours) Optician services for Veteran beneficiaries of the Sheridan VA Health Care System (SVAHCS). Services shall be performed on site at the SVAHCS located at 1898 Fort Road, Sheridan, WY in accordance with the terms and conditions contained herein. The period of performance is anticipated to be a one-year base plus four one-year option periods. Board-Eligible or Board-Certified Optometrist(s) requires licensure through the American Board of Optometry. The contractor s optometrist(s) care shall cover the range of Optometry services as would be provided in a state-of-the-art civilian eye care center and the standard of care shall be of a quality, meeting or exceeding currently recognized national standards as established by the American Optometric Association (AOA). The service providers shall possess the required qualification/elements to be privileged and/or credentialed in accordance with the VetPro, background checks, fingerprinting, badging, annual fit testing, and pre-employment and annual drug testing. The contractor s credentials/qualifications are subject to review by the SVAHCS Staff. These qualifications, at a minimum, will be based on Joint Commission (JC), or equivalent, quality standards for training, education, and competency. Responses *All responses should include the following: FSS contract number (if applicable), socioeconomic category, technical/capability information (capabilities, ability to meet VA requirements, and existing customers). FSS Contract Holders: Include any pertinent FSS Schedule numbers as well as the expiration date. FSS contract must include the appropriate SIN category. Capabilities: Interested sources may submit a 1 or 2-page capability statement with enough detail for the Government to make an informed decision regarding such capability. The statement should identify supplier s name, address, point of contact, phone and fax numbers, e-mail addresses and business type and size pursuant to the NAICS code listed above. Socioeconomic Category: SDVSBs must be certified in the SBA s VetCert portal (Veteran Small Business Certification (sba.gov). For any prospective solicitation and/or resultant contract, the limitations on subcontracting will apply to SDVOSBs and VOSBs. For large businesses, a subcontracting plan would apply, if a subsequent solicitation is posted on an unrestricted basis. SAM: Should a solicitation be issued, all offerors would be required to be registered in SAM (SAM.gov | Home). Please email all responses and capability statements to Haylee Schrick-Ange at haylee.schrick-ange@va.gov by 2:00 PM Mountain Standard Time (MST), November 15, 2023. Please note "36C25924Q0037 Optometrist Services/ Optician-SVHSC" in the subject line of the email. Responses must be received via e-mail. Telephone, fax, or mail responses will not be accepted. This notice is to assist the VA in determining sources only. A solicitation is not currently available. If a solicitation is issued, it will be announced at a later date and all interested parties must respond to any subsequent solicitation separately from the responses to this announcement. Responses are not a request to be added to a prospective offerors list or to receive a copy of the solicitation.