SOURCES SOUGHT
Q -- Drug and Steroid Testing in Afghanistan and Israel - Contractor Information Sheet
- Notice Date
- 4/29/2013
- Notice Type
- Sources Sought
- NAICS
- 621511
— Medical Laboratories
- Contracting Office
- Department of State, Office of Acquisitions, Acquisition Management, 1735 N. Lynn St., Arlington, Virginia, 22209, United States
- ZIP Code
- 22209
- Solicitation Number
- RFI(04292013)
- Point of Contact
- Adam D. Hiland,
- E-Mail Address
-
HilandAD@state.gov
(HilandAD@state.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- N/A
- Description
- Contractor Information Sheet REQUEST FOR INFORMATION: ON-SITE SPECIMEN COLLECTION OF DOS DIPLOMATIC SECURITY (DS) EMPLOYEES 1.0 PURPOSE The Department of State (DoS) Office of Diplomatic Security (DS) is concerned with the well-being of its employees, the successful accomplishment of agency missions, and the need to maintain employee productivity. Many of the DS-hired U.S. Citizen (USC) and Third Country National (TCN) direct hire and/or contract positions in Afghanistan and Jerusalem involve the use of weapons and access to highly sensitive information that must not be compromised. It is critically important that such armed employees, or those employees exposed to extreme conditions, be reliable, stable, and show good use of judgment. Illegal drug and steroid use creates the possibility of coercion, influence, and irresponsible action under pressure, all of which may pose a serious risk to national defense, public safety, and security. Prior to deployment, all employees certify that drug testing and steroid screening is a nonnegotiable condition of employment. This performance work statement defines the drug and steroid testing requirements (hereinafter referred to as "Substance Screening") applicable to DS-hired USC and TCN direct hires and/or contract positions in Afghanistan and Jerusalem. In this document, DS will be referred to as the DS who will receive support from the Contractor. Employee will be the all-encompassing term for DS direct hires, personal services contractors, or third party contractors. A list of additional definitions is provided at the end of this RFI. 2.0 SCOPE OF WORK The Contractor shall be licensed to operate through the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (GIRoA) and Government of Israel, and shall be in full compliance with host country business requirements. The Contractor will be self-sufficient and required to provide all life support, travel and security needs for staff. In addition, the Contractor shall support all shipping, maintenance, and housing of equipment necessary to perform services. The Contractor will provide all resources to perform random and non-random Substance Screening, preferably at the following locations, with the corresponding number of estimated employees: • Kabul: 1300 • Mazar e-Sharif: 150 • Herat: 175 • Jerusalem: 55 Random screening will be on a semiannual basis (every six months) as well as non-random substance testing. All random and non-random substance testing performed shall comply with Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Privacy and Security Rules (http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/understanding/summary/index.html). See Sections 4.1- Random Drug Testing and Steroid Screening and 4.2- Non-Random (Post Incident, Reasonable Suspicion, Follow-up, etc.). As coordinated with DS, the Contractor will preferably utilize its in-country clinics for Substance Screening. The clinic shall meet the standards outlined in the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Laboratory Certification Program. Please refer to the following SAMHSA link for further information: http://www.workplace.samhsa.gov/DrugTesting/pdf/Natl_Lab_Cert_Prog_Background1007.pdf 3.0 PERSONNEL REQUIREMENTS The Contractor's in-country medical staff shall be capable of attaining a Moderate Risk Public Trust (MRPT) security certification processed by DOS within 60 days prior to contract award. Not more than three certified test personnel, with one also serving as a site lead, are anticipated to be necessary and available 24 hours per day, seven days per week at each of the four locations (Jerusalem, Kabul, Mazar e-Sharif and Herat). Refer to the following information for an MRPT to be processed: http://www.opm.gov/investigations/background-investigations/federal-investigations-notices/2010/aligning_opm_investigative_levels.pdf All staff shall be fully certified and trained to US standards, in accordance to HHS Mandatory Guidelines for Federal Workplace Drug Testing Programs, on the procedures for obtaining a urine specimen, conducting and reading a rapid test for substances and, when necessary, establishing proper chain of custody procedures when transporting urine specimens to a lab for analysis. All staff must pass an examination administered by a Health and Human Services-approved organization. Please refer to the following link for medical review officer resources that will be relied upon for guidelines: http://www.workplace.samhsa.gov/Dtesting.html Employees must maintain an unbiased and fair approach while conducting business, and should not be affiliated with and/or hold financial interest(s) in any private security contractors currently contracting with (or seeking to contract with) DS. 4.0 DESCRIPTION OF SERVICES The Contractor shall be prepared to test for the following drugs utilizing a rapid urine test in Afghanistan and/or Israel, except for Steroid: • Amphetamine • Opiate • Benzodiazepine • Barbituates • Cocaine • Marijuana • Steroid: Refer to the following commonly abused steroids on the National Institute on Drug Abuse's (NISA) website or at Steroidabuse.gov. 4.1 COLLECTION OF SPECIMENS Requirements for specimen collection vary according to the purpose for which the results will be used. However, to meet evidentiary requirements the service provider must ensure the specimen collection site be secure in order to eliminate the possibility of specimen tampering or adulteration and to ensure the security of the collected specimens. The validity of urine drug screen results is dependent on specimen integrity. The service provider shall provide direct-observation collections to provide specimens of the greatest credibility and to ensure the donor does not have access to substances which may affect test results (water, chemicals, substitute urine, etc.). Service provider shall address the following specimen requisitions: • Security Seal • Specimen Label • Donor Information & Collector Verification • Chain-Of-custody procedures 4.2 RANDOM DRUG TESTING AND STEROID SCREENING At the beginning of each workweek, DS will forward to the Contractor's Project Management Office (PMO) based in Afghanistan (a site lead may be provided in Jerusalem) a list of at least 15 employees per site, per week identified to undergo Substance Screening. To assist with the Contractor's data entry process, the employee rosters will be in a format as directed by Contractor. The in-country Contractor PMO will contact DS to address any questions or concerns. The Contractor's designated site lead will coordinate with the DS's designated site representative (a minimum of one for each of the aforementioned sites) to schedule random drug screening. DS will provide the drug test appointment information to the employee in accordance with the DS's random drug test guidelines, not more than two hours in advance (i.e. as unannounced as possible). The DS-designated site representative and the Contractor's designated site lead shall jointly resolve any potential scheduling conflicts concerning the employee and the DS-designated appointment time. The DS's employee will complete the substance screening (if necessary) at their reserved time period. The DS employee must be accompanied by his or her supervisor or DS-designated point of contact. For drug testing, the Contractor will verify the identity of the employee, use a rapid urine test for the initial screen and obtain, when required, a urine specimen for a secondary screening. Immediate or close to immediate results are expected. After a secondary non-negative screening, the urine specimen will then be prepared and shipped to a CONUS SAMHSA-certified laboratory for analysis using strict chain of custody procedures (See Section 2). If any of the drug screen results are negative, they will be documented using a Contractor-provided digital documentation system which will have all relevant schedules, results, and identification information. This digital documentation system will be updated on a weekly basis. Access to the system will be provided to DS's designated representatives in Afghanistan and Jerusalem and the DS program management U.S. office. If the Substance Screening results are negative, the Contractor will document and submit a negative report to DSs' designated representative as a separate monthly report. If the Substance Screening results are non-negative, the urine specimen will be screened in a second rapid kit. If the second screen presents as a non-negative, the Contractor will immediately notify DS. The same urine specimen will then be prepared and shipped to a laboratory for analysis and confirmatory testing. Once the results are back, the Contractor will update its documentation as required and forward the results to DS's designated representative within one week for disposition. The Contractor must also test for the evidence of an adulterant, dilution, and/or substitution of the sample. If there are indications of adulterant use, the Contractor must cease the test and immediately notify DS. Direct observation of a collection may be necessary per DS discretion. Documentation of the incident must be submitted to DS within 24 hours. All employees must undergo random Substance Screening at least once every six months. At the end of every six-month period, the Contractor will provide a full report documenting the number of tests conducted, all results, and any related information. 4.3 NON-RANDOM (POST INCIDENT, REASONABLE SUSPICION, FOLLOW-UP, ETC.) DRUG TESTING DS will initiate all non-random Substance Screenings. The Contractor's designated site lead will reserve a slot at its clinic to perform the non-random Substance Screening on one hour's notice. Accordingly, the Contractor's designated site lead must be available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to answer these requests. DS's designated representative or supervisor will accompany the employee for any post-incident or reasonable suspicion testing. The DS employee will complete the non-random drug screen at the Contractor's clinic. If the Substance Screening results are negative, the information will be documented and provided to DS. If the Substance Screening results are non-negative, the urine specimen will be screened in a second rapid kit and DS shall be notified immediately (See Section 4.1 screening procedures). If the second screen presents as a non-negative, the same urine specimen will be prepared and shipped to a laboratory for analysis and confirmatory testing. Once the results are back, the Contractor will update its documentation as required and forward the results to DS's designated representative within five days for disposition. Upon a DS-initiated non-random test, the Contractor shall conduct such non-random testing prior to any random drug testing the Contractor has scheduled. Definitions DS Direct Hires: Diplomatic Security career employees. Employee: All-encompassing term for DS direct hires, personal services contractors, or third party contractors. Non-Random: Non-Random screening will be at the request of DS and may occur anytime during a 24 hour period as a result of a post incident such as a vehicle accident, or if there is reasonable suspicion of illicit drug or steroid use, or as a follow-up to a previous incident. Personal Services Contractors: Employees who have a limited direct contract with the U.S. Government Random: Random screening will be on a semiannual basis (every six months). Therefore the completion of the semiannual screening shall occur six months after contract start date and continue every six months thereafter. Third Party Contractors: Employees of a contract company providing services to the U.S. Government. All personnel have an employee to employer relationship and separate agreements which shall not deviate from the terms of the U.S. Government contract. ________________________________________________________________________ It is requested that all interested parties submit their capabilities by email to Adam D. Hiland at HilandAD@state.gov addressing the above requirements by 3:00 pm EST, May 31, 2013. Interested parties shall also complete the Contractor Information Sheet attached hereto. If you have any questions or comments, please reference this Sources Sought (RFI) Notice when calling or emailing. At this time, the Department of State does not guarantee that any future contracts may be awarded covering the aforementioned duties and responses to this Sources Sought Notice do not bind the U.S. Department of State to any agreement with responding parties, be it explicit or implied.
- Web Link
-
FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/spg/State/A-LM-AQM/A-LM-AQM/RFI(04292013)/listing.html)
- Place of Performance
- Address: Afghanistan (Kabul, Herat, and Mazar), Israel (Jerusalem), Afghanistan
- Record
- SN03047632-W 20130501/130429234318-ca51ad5eac49ff56fa0b74546f2115ac (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps Link to This Notice
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