Loren Data's SAM Daily™

FBO DAILY - FEDBIZOPPS ISSUE OF MARCH 30, 2014 FBO #4509
DOCUMENT

B -- INTENT TO SOLE SOURCE STATISTICAL ANALYT AND PROGRAMMER VA PALO ALTO HEALTHCARE - Attachment

Notice Date

3/28/2014
 

Notice Type

Attachment
 

NAICS

541511 — Custom Computer Programming Services
 

Contracting Office

Department of Veterans Affairs;VA Sierra Pacific Network (VISN 21);VA Sierra Nevada Health Care System;975 Kirman Avenue;Reno NV 89502-2597
 

ZIP Code

89502-2597
 

Solicitation Number

VA26114Q0424
 

Archive Date

5/4/2014
 

Point of Contact

Rusty.Stevenson@va.gov
 

E-Mail Address

rusty.stevenson@va.gov
(rusty.stevenson@va.gov)
 

Small Business Set-Aside

N/A
 

Award Number

640-14-2-134-0038
 

Award Date

4/4/2014
 

Description

The Department of Veterans Affairs, VISN 21, Network Contracting Office, intends to negotiate a sole source Contract with Jennifer Scott to provide Statistical Programming and Analysis for the VA Palo Alto Healthcare Facility located at 3801 Miranda Ave., Palo Alto, CA 94304. This procurement is being conducted in accordance with FAR 6.302-1(a)(2). The VA's minimum needs can only be satisfied by unique supplies or services available from only one source (41 USC 253 (c) (1)). Contract is firm fixed price and the NAICS Code is 611610. This Notice of Intent is not a request for competitive proposals. No solicitations documents are available and telephone requests will not be honored. However, if a firm believes it can meet the requirements it must furnish information about its products and services, as well as references from other customers who are using these products or service, to the Contracting Officer within three (3) calendar days from the date of publication of this synopsis. Supporting evidence must be furnished in sufficient detail to demonstrate the ability to comply with the above requirements. Information must be sent via e-mail only to the Contract Specialist at Rusty.Stevenson@va.gov. Responses received will be evaluated, however; a determination by the Government not to compete the proposed procurement based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. If no responses are received, the Network Contracting Office NCO 21 will proceed with the sole source negotiation with Jennifer Scott. SCOPE OF WORK ATTACHED Department of Veterans Affairs STATEMENT OF WORK 2237 Transaction Number: 640-14-2-134-0038 Point of Contact/SME: Christine Pal Chee, Ph.D. COR: Cheylynne Bosley, Administrative Officer, CSP 1.DESCRIPTION OF SERVICE HERC has created a dataset that contains the health care utilization, health care costs, health conditions, and socio-demographic characteristics of VA patients from FY2007-2012. This dataset allowed us to characterize the highest cost patients in VA and sources of their health care costs. To understand longitudinal patterns in health care utilization and spending of VA patients both within VA and across the VA, Medicare, and Medicaid programs - and to identify predictors of high, persistently high, and transiently high costs - we require this dataset to be augmented and expanded. In particular, we require a longitudinal dataset with the following information for a 20% random sample of Veterans in enrolled in VHA in FY2008: -VA health care utilization, health care costs, health conditions, and socio-demographic characteristics from FY2005-2013 -Medicare health care utilization, health care costs, and health conditions from FY2005-2011 -Medicaid health care utilization, health care costs, and health conditions from FY2005-2010 The original SAS programs used to create the FY2007-2012 dataset will need to be revised to include additional years of VA data, and new programs will need to be developed to process and incorporate Medicare and Medicaid data. These data will be used to inform VA programs and clinical managers in the development and implementation of primary care programs aimed at improving the care and lowering costs of VA's highest cost patients. Given our role in current efforts to develop programs throughout the VA for these patients, the timely creation of this data is critical to our work. The contractor will be responsible for successfully completing the following tasks: 1.The identification of the population of Veterans enrolled in VHA in FY2008 and the selection of a 20% random sample from that population of enrolled Veterans (hereinafter referred to as "the 20% sample"). 2.The creation of a dataset containing FY2005-2013 VA health care costs and percentiles, by categories of care, for each Veteran in the 20% sample. 3.The creation of a dataset containing FY2005-2013 socio-demographic characteristics derived from VA Enrollment, Vital Status, and Utilization data for each Veteran in the 20% sample. 4.The creation of a dataset containing FY2005-2013 VA health care utilization, by types of care, for each Veteran in the 20% sample. 5.The creation of a dataset containing FY2005-2013 chronic and acute conditions derived from VA utilization data for each Veteran in the 20% sample. 6.The creation of a dataset containing FY2005-2011 Medicare costs and percentiles, by categories of care, for each Veteran in the 20% sample. 7.The creation of a dataset containing FY2005-2011 Medicare utilization, by types of care, for each Veteran in the 20% sample. 8.The creation of a dataset containing FY2005-2011 chronic and acute conditions derived from Medicare utilization data for each Veteran in the 20% sample. 9.The creation of a dataset containing FY2005-2010 Medicaid costs and percentiles, by categories of care, for each Veteran in the 20% sample. 10.The creation of a dataset containing FY2005-2010 Medicaid utilization, by types of care, for each Veteran in the 20% sample. 11.The creation of a dataset containing FY2005-2010 chronic and acute conditions derived from Medicaid utilization data for each Veteran in the 20% sample. 12.The creation of a merged dataset containing variables specified by the Government from datasets identified from items 2-11 above. 13.The calculation and reporting of descriptive statistics for all cost, socio-demographic, utilization, and condition variables by year. 14.The calculation and reporting of additional statistics from the merged dataset identified in task 12 above as specified by the Government. The COR shall be Cheylynne Bosley, Administrative Officer, Cooperative Studies Program (CSP). She will work closely with the point of contact to monitor contract compliance through monthly e-mails, phone calls, or in-person review. 2.CONTRACTOR REQUIREMENTS AND DUTIES 2.1Contractor must have expert knowledge of VA Medical SAS, DSS NDE, ADUSH Enrollment, VHA Vital Status, and HERC Average Cost data. 2.2Contractor must have expertise in statistical programming using SAS code. 2.3Contractor must currently hold a Without Compensation Appointment (WOC) within VAPAHCS and a current CITI training certificate. 2.4Specific Duties: -Work effectively with team members and interact professionally with VA staff via phone and email. -Develop SAS code to analyze cost and utilization data from VA, Medicare, and Medicaid data sources. -Develop a user's guide on the SAS programs used to process and analyze the above data. -Submit invoices electronically, directly to the online processing center with all required details on the invoice. 3.EDUCATION AND BACKGROUND Contractor must have a Master's degree in statistics with extensive experience and knowledge of biostatistics. Contractor must have extensive experience in using SAS statistical program. Contractor must have experience in analyzing health care data, including use of ICD-9 diagnosis codes, inpatient, outpatient, pharmacy and fee basis cost data. Contractor must have experience conducting economic analysis of medical costs of VA patients. 4.LOCATION OF PERFORMANCE Contractor may perform duties assigned at VAPAHCS, or remotely. 5.PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE Within twelve months from the date of contract award. 6.DELIVERABLES The Contractor shall demonstrate ability to work effectively with HERC management, access VA data, and extract data necessary to perform data management and statistical analyses for this project. Due one month from start of contract: The completion of task 1 specified in the Description of Service and, specifically, a dataset containing SCRSSSN of a random 20% sample of Veterans enrolled in VHA in FY2008. Due three months from start of contract: The completion of tasks 2-5 specified in the Description of Service. The Contractor shall have created datasets containing FY2005-2013 VA health care costs and percentiles, socio-demographic characteristics, utilization, and conditions for all Veterans in the 20% random sample. The Contractor shall also have completed documentation for all datasets as well as for all SAS programs used to create the datasets. VA health care costs and percentiles will be calculated for the following categories of care: inpatient medical and surgical, inpatient behavioral, inpatient long-term care, inpatient residential, all other inpatient; outpatient medical and surgical, outpatient diagnostic, outpatient behavioral, all other outpatient; inpatient fee-basis; outpatient fee-basis; and outpatient pharmacy. Socio-demographic characteristics include: station, age, gender, race/ethnicity, marital status, geographic region of residence, service connection, means test eligibility, and insurance status. Variables for health care utilization will be constructed for the following types of care: primary care visits, major subspecialty specialty care, procedure-based specialty care, surgical specialty care, hospice/palliative care, admit screening, emergency visits, lab, mental health, inpatient medical and surgical, inpatient behavioral, inpatient long-term care, inpatient residential, and all other inpatient. Conditions span approximately fifty acute and chronic conditions to be provided to the Contractor. Due four months from start of contract: The completion of task 6 specified in the Description of Service. The Contractor shall have created a dataset containing FY2005-2011 Medicare costs and percentiles for all Veterans in the 20% random sample. The Contractor shall also have completed documentation for dataset as well as for all SAS programs used to create the dataset. Due five months from start of contract: The completion of task 7 specified in the Description of Service. The Contractor shall have created a dataset containing FY2005-2011 Medicare utilization for all Veterans in the 20% random sample. The Contractor shall also have completed documentation for dataset as well as for all SAS programs used to create the dataset. Due six months from start of contract: The completion of task 8 specified in the Description of Service. The Contractor shall have created a dataset containing FY2005-2011 chronic and acute conditions derived from Medicare utilization data for all Veterans in the 20% random sample. The Contractor shall also have completed documentation for dataset as well as for all SAS programs used to create the dataset. Due seven months from start of contract: The completion of task 9 specified in the Description of Service. The Contractor shall have created a dataset containing FY2005-2010 Medicaid costs and percentiles for all Veterans in the 20% random sample. The Contractor shall also have completed documentation for dataset as well as for all SAS programs used to create the dataset. Due eight months from start of contract: The completion of task 10 specified in the Description of Service. The Contractor shall have created a dataset containing FY2005-2010 Medicaid utilization for all Veterans in the 20% random sample. The Contractor shall also have completed documentation for dataset as well as for all SAS programs used to create the dataset. Due nine months from start of contract: The completion of task 11 specified in the Description of Service. The Contractor shall have created a dataset containing FY2005-2010chronic and acute conditions derived from Medicaid utilization data for all Veterans in the 20% random sample. The Contractor shall also have completed documentation for dataset as well as for all SAS programs used to create the dataset. Due ten months from start of contract: The completion of task 12 specified in the Description of Service. The Contractor shall have created a merged dataset containing cost, socio-demographic, utilization, and condition variables from datasets created in tasks 2-11 specified in the Description of Service. The Contractor shall also have completed documentation for dataset as well as for all SAS programs used to create the dataset. Due eleven months from start of contract: The completion of task 13 specified in the Description of Service. The Contractor shall have calculated and reported descriptive statistics for all cost, socio-demographic, utilization, and condition variables by year. The Contractor shall also have completed documentation for the SAS programs used to calculate the descriptive statistics. Due twelve months from start of contract: The completion of task 14 specified in the Description of Service. The Contractor shall have completed any additional statistical tests specified by the Government. The Contractor shall also finalize and submit all documentation for all created datasets and SAS programs used as part of this contract. 7.VERIFICATION OF WORK HOURS Contractor will submit monthly status reports outlining progress in terms of stated material development goals to the point of contact, Christine Pal Chee, Ph.D. The COR, Cheylynne Bosley, Administrative Officer,CSP, will verify contractor performance and compliance with the point of contact, Christine Pal Chee, Ph.D., on a monthly basis. 8.REIMBURSEMENT/PAYMENT 8.1Payment shall be on an hourly rate of $70.00, not to exceed 400 hours, or contract total of $28,000 during the twelve month contract period. 8.2The contractor shall submit an invoice electronically on a monthly basis directly to FSC in Austin. 8.3Direct Deposit will be set up through CCR. Payment will be requested by Contractor according to the schedule of their work completion, either bi-weekly or monthly. 9.DATA SECURITY Contractors, contractor personnel, subcontractors, and subcontractor personnel shall be subject to the same Federal laws, regulations, standards, and VA Directives and Handbooks as VA and VA personnel regarding information and information system security. 10.ACCESS TO VA INFORMATION AND VA INFORMATION SYSTEMS 10.1A contractor/subcontractor shall request logical (technical) or physical access to VA information and VA information systems for their employees, subcontractors, and affiliates only to the extent necessary to perform the services specified in the contract, agreement, or task order. 10.2All contractors, subcontractors, and third-party servicers and associates working with VA information are subject to the same investigative requirements as those of VA appointees or employees who have access to the same types of information. The level and process of background security investigations for contractors must be in accordance with VA Directive and Handbook 0710, Personnel Suitability and Security Program. The Office for Operations, Security, and Preparedness is responsible for these policies and procedures. 10.3Contract personnel who require access to national security programs must have a valid security clearance. National Industrial Security Program (NISP) was established by Executive Order 12829 to ensure that cleared U.S. defense industry contract personnel safeguard the classified information in their possession while performing work on contracts, programs, bids, or research and development efforts. The Department of Veterans Affairs does not have a Memorandum of Agreement with Defense Security Service (DSS). Verification of a Security Clearance must be processed through the Special Security Officer located in the Planning and National Security Service within the Office of Operations, Security, and Preparedness. 10.4Custom software development and outsourced operations must be located in the U.S. to the maximum extent practical. If such services are proposed to be performed abroad and are not disallowed by other VA policy or mandates, the contractor/subcontractor must state where all non-U.S. services are provided and detail a security plan, deemed to be acceptable by VA, specifically to address mitigation of the resulting problems of communication, control, data protection, and so forth. Location within the U.S. may be an evaluation factor. 10.5The contractor or subcontractor must notify the Contracting Officer immediately when an employee working on a VA system or with access to VA information is reassigned or leaves the contractor or subcontractor's employ. The Contracting Officer must also be notified immediately by the contractor or subcontractor prior to an unfriendly termination. 11.VA INFORMATION CUSTODIAL LANGUAGE 11.1Information made available to the contractor or subcontractor by VA for the performance or administration of this contract or information developed by the contractor/subcontractor in performance or administration of the contract shall be used only for those purposes and shall not be used in any other way without the prior written agreement of the VA. This clause expressly limits the contractor/subcontractor's rights to use data as described in Rights in Data - General, FAR 52.227-14(d) (1). 11.2VA information should not be co-mingled, if possible, with any other data on the contractors/subcontractor's information systems or media storage systems in order to ensure VA requirements related to data protection and media sanitization can be met. If co-mingling must be allowed to meet the requirements of the business need, the contractor must ensure that VA's information is returned to the VA or destroyed in accordance with VA's sanitization requirements. VA reserves the right to conduct onsite inspections of contractor and subcontractor IT resources to ensure data security controls, separation of data and job duties, and destruction/media sanitization procedures are in compliance with VA directive requirements. 11.3Prior to termination or completion of this contract, contractor/subcontractor must not destroy information received from VA, or gathered/created by the contractor in the course of performing this contract without prior written approval by the VA. Any data destruction done on behalf of VA by a contractor/subcontractor must be done in accordance with National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) requirements as outlined in VA Directive 6300, Records and Information Management and its Handbook 6300.1 Records Management Procedures, applicable VA Records Control Schedules, and VA Handbook 6500.1, Electronic Media Sanitization. Self-certification by the contractor that the data destruction requirements above have been met must be sent to the VA Contracting Officer within 30 days of termination of the contract. 11.4The contractor/subcontractor must receive, gather, store, back up, maintain, use, disclose and dispose of VA information only in compliance with the terms of the contract and applicable Federal and VA information confidentiality and security laws, regulations and policies. If Federal or VA information confidentiality and security laws, regulations and policies become applicable to the VA information or information systems after execution of the contract, or if NIST issues or updates applicable FIPS or Special Publications (SP) after execution of this contract, the parties agree to negotiate in good faith to implement the information confidentiality and security laws, regulations and policies in this contract. 11.5The contractor/subcontractor shall not make copies of VA information except as authorized and necessary to perform the terms of the agreement or to preserve electronic information stored on contractor/subcontractor electronic storage media for restoration in case any electronic equipment or data used by the contractor/subcontractor needs to be restored to an operating state. If copies are made for restoration purposes, after the restoration is complete, the copies must be appropriately destroyed. 11.6If VA determines that the contractor has violated any of the information confidentiality, privacy, and security provisions of the contract, it shall be sufficient grounds for VA to withhold payment to the contractor or third party or terminate the contract for default or terminate for cause under Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) part 12. 11.7If a VHA contract is terminated for cause, the associated BAA must also be terminated and appropriate actions taken in accordance with VHA Handbook 1600.01, Business Associate Agreements. Absent an agreement to use or disclose protected health information, there is no business associate relationship. 11.8The contractor/subcontractor must store, transport, or transmit VA sensitive information in an encrypted form, using VA-approved encryption tools that are, at a minimum, FIPS 140-2 validated. 11.9The contractor/subcontractor's firewall and Web services security controls, if applicable, shall meet or exceed VA's minimum requirements. VA Configuration Guidelines are available upon request. 11.10Except for uses and disclosures of VA information authorized by this contract for performance of the contract, the contractor/subcontractor may use and disclose VA information only in two other situations: (i) in response to a qualifying order of a court of competent jurisdiction, or (ii) with VA's prior written approval. The contractor/subcontractor must refer all requests for, demands for production of, or inquiries about, VA information and information systems to the VA contracting officer for response. 11.11Notwithstanding the provision above, the contractor/subcontractor shall not release VA records protected by Title 38 U.S.C. 5705, confidentiality of medical quality assurance records and/or Title 38 U.S.C. 7332, confidentiality of certain health records pertaining to drug addiction, sickle cell anemia, alcoholism or alcohol abuse, or infection with human immunodeficiency virus. If the contractor/subcontractor is in receipt of a court order or other requests for the above mentioned information, that contractor/subcontractor shall immediately refer such court orders or other requests to the VA contracting officer for response. 11.12For service that involves the storage, generating, transmitting, or exchanging of VA sensitive information but does not require C&A or an MOU-ISA for system interconnection, the contractor/subcontractor must complete a Contractor Security Control Assessment (CSCA) on a yearly basis and provide it to the COR. 12.SECURITY INCIDENT INVESTIGATION 12.1The term "security incident" means an event that has, or could have, resulted in unauthorized access to, loss or damage to VA assets, or sensitive information, or an action that breaches VA security procedures. The contractor/subcontractor shall immediately notify the COR and simultaneously, the designated ISO and Privacy Officer for the contract of any known or suspected security/privacy incidents, or any unauthorized disclosure of sensitive information, including that contained in system(s) to which the contractor/subcontractor has access. 12.2To the extent known by the contractor/subcontractor, the contractor/subcontractor's notice to VA shall identify the information involved, the circumstances surrounding the incident (including to whom, how, when, and where the VA information or assets were placed at risk or compromised), and any other information that the contractor/subcontractor considers relevant. 12.3With respect to unsecured protected health information, the business associate is deemed to have discovered a data breach when the business associate knew or should have known of a breach of such information. Upon discovery, the business associate must notify the covered entity of the breach. Notifications need to be made in accordance with the executed business associate agreement. 12.4In instances of theft or break-in or other criminal activity, the contractor/subcontractor must concurrently report the incident to the appropriate law enforcement entity (or entities) of jurisdiction, including the VA OIG and Security and Law Enforcement. The contractor, its employees, and its subcontractors and their employees shall cooperate with VA and any law enforcement authority responsible for the investigation and prosecution of any possible criminal law violation(s) associated with any incident. The contractor/subcontractor shall cooperate with VA in any civil litigation to recover VA information, obtain monetary or other compensation from a third party for damages arising from any incident, or obtain injunctive relief against any third party arising from, or related to, the incident. 13.LIQUIDATED DAMAGES FOR DATA BREACH 13.1Consistent with the requirements of 38 U.S.C. §5725, a contract may require access to sensitive personal information. If so, the contractor is liable to VA for liquidated damages in the event of a data breach or privacy incident involving any SPI the contractor/subcontractor processes or maintains under this contract. 13.2The contractor/subcontractor shall provide notice to VA of a "security incident" as set forth in the Security Incident Investigation section above. Upon such notification, VA must secure from a non-Department entity or the VA Office of Inspector General an independent risk analysis of the data breach to determine the level of risk associated with the data breach for the potential misuse of any sensitive personal information involved in the data breach. The term 'data breach' means the loss, theft, or other unauthorized access, or any access other than that incidental to the scope of employment, to data containing sensitive personal information, in electronic or printed form, that results in the potential compromise of the confidentiality or integrity of the data. Contractor shall fully cooperate with the entity performing the risk analysis. Failure to cooperate may be deemed a material breach and grounds for contract termination. 13.3Each risk analysis shall address all relevant information concerning the data breach, including the following: (1)Nature of the event (loss, theft, unauthorized access); (2)Description of the event, including: (a)date of occurrence; (b)data elements involved, including any PII, such as full name, social security number, date of birth, home address, account number, disability code; (3)Number of individuals affected or potentially affected; (4)Names of individuals or groups affected or potentially affected; (5)Ease of logical data access to the lost, stolen or improperly accessed data in light of the degree of protection for the data, e.g., unencrypted, plain text; (6)Amount of time the data has been out of VA control; (7)The likelihood that the sensitive personal information will or has been compromised (made accessible to and usable by unauthorized persons); (8)Known misuses of data containing sensitive personal information, if any; (9)Assessment of the potential harm to the affected individuals; (10)Data breach analysis as outlined in 6500.2 Handbook, Management of Security and Privacy Incidents, as appropriate; and (11)Whether credit protection services may assist record subjects in avoiding or mitigating the results of identity theft based on the sensitive personal information that may have been compromised. 13.4Based on the determinations of the independent risk analysis, the contractor shall be responsible for paying to the VA liquidated damages in the amount of $37.50 per affected individual to cover the cost of providing credit protection services to affected individuals consisting of the following: (1)Notification; (2)One year of credit monitoring services consisting of automatic daily monitoring of at least 3 relevant credit bureau reports; (3)Data breach analysis; (4)Fraud resolution services, including writing dispute letters, initiating fraud alerts and credit freezes, to assist affected individuals to bring matters to resolution; (5)One year of identity theft insurance with $20,000.00 coverage at $0 deductible; and 13.5Necessary legal expenses the subjects may incur to repair falsified or damaged credit records, histories, or financial affairs. 14.TRAINING 14.1All contractor employees and subcontractor employees requiring access to VA information and VA information systems shall complete the following before being granted access to VA information and its systems: (1)Sign and acknowledge (either manually or electronically) understanding of and responsibilities for compliance with the Contractor Rules of Behavior, Appendix E relating to access to VA information and information systems; (2)Successfully complete the VA Cyber Security Awareness and Rules of Behavior training and annually complete required security training; (3)Successfully complete the appropriate VA privacy training and annually complete required privacy training; and (4)Successfully complete any additional cyber security or privacy training, as required for VA personnel with equivalent information system access [to be defined by the VA program official and provided to the contracting officer for inclusion in the solicitation document - e.g., any role-based information security training required in accordance with NIST Special Publication 800-16, Information Technology Security Training Requirements.] 14.2The contractor shall provide to the contracting officer and/or the COR a copy of the training certificates and certification of signing the Contractor Rules of Behavior for each applicable employee within 1 week of the initiation of the contract and annually thereafter, as required. 14.3Failure to complete the mandatory annual training and sign the Rules of Behavior annually, within the timeframe required, is grounds for suspension or termination of all physical or electronic access privileges and removal from work on the contract until such time as the training and documents are complete. Line 6: The C&A requirement do not apply and that a security Accreditation Package is not required. Line 7: VA sensitive data will be protected in accordance with the guidelines spelled out in VA handbook 6500 rules of behavior. PDAT: This risk of this contractor accidently releasing any PII or VA owned data is minimal. This contractor will be required to complete the VA online security training prior to the start of the contract. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS JUSTIFICATION AND APPROVAL FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION 1.Contracting Activity: Department of Veterans Affairs, NCO 21; 2615 E. Clinton Avenue, Fresno, CA 93703. 2.Nature and/or Description of the Action Being Processed: Justification and approval for Other than Full and Open Competition for Jennifer Scott to perform Statistical Programming and Analysis for the VA Palo Alto Healthcare System. 3.Description of Supplies/Services Required to Meet the Agency's Needs: HERC has created a dataset that contains the health care utilization, health care costs, health conditions, and socio-demographic characteristics of VA patients from FY2007-2012. This dataset allowed us to characterize the highest cost patients in VA and sources of their health care costs. To understand longitudinal patterns in health care utilization and spending of VA patients both within VA and across the VA, Medicare, and Medicaid programs - and to identify predictors of high, persistently high, and transiently high costs - we require this dataset to be augmented and expanded. In particular, we require a longitudinal dataset with the following information for a 20% random sample of Veterans in enrolled in VHA in FY2008 4. The total amount of this service is $28,000. 4. Statutory Authority Permitting Other than Full and Open Competition: FAR 6.302-1(a)(2). The VA's minimum needs can only be satisfied by unique supplies or services available from only one source (41 USC 253 (c) (1)). 5. Demonstration that the Contractor's Unique Qualifications or Nature of the Acquisition Requires the Use of the Authority Cited Above (applicability of authority): Ms. Scott is the creator of the HERC dataset and the programming code to analyze the data. The research study for which this analysis is required must adhere to time line for completion of tasks as well as funding period limitations. The task performed by Ms. Scott cannot be replaced by another person in a timely manner and/or at a fair and reasonable price. Complex programming procedures are involved. She searched hundreds of diagnosis codes in order to create her program. Her knowledge of diagnosis codes to create the variables is indispensable and would take substantial effort to replicate this work if she is not able to complete the program. Developing the SAS program also involves extensive validating and checking records for diagnosis codes that are uncategorized or mis-categorized. These steps involved complex coding that few other analysts can perform with successful in the given period of time. Ms. Scott has unique knowledge about this task and her involvement in the project will save HERC considerable time and resources. With the background knowledge that Ms. Scott possesses with regard to these programs, she will be able to properly document the procedure in order to provide training for other programmers and statistical analysts. 6. Description of Efforts Made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as deemed practicable: Customer has been unsuccessful at locating an alternate source to perform this task in the allotted time and budget. 7. Determination by the Contracting Officer that the Anticipated Cost to the Government will be Fair and Reasonable: A Research Health Science Specialist is classified by OPM in the 601 series. The salary range for a Health Science Specialist in the San Jose / San Francisco / Oakland area is a GS-12 or $81,460 to $105,897 per year, locality pay included. Based on this information, $28,000 is well-below the normal rate of pay for similar services. Based on this information, price is considered fair and reasonable to the Government. 8.Description of the Market Research Conducted and the Results, or a Statement of the Reasons Market Research Was Not Conducted: None for reasons stated above in #5. 9.Any Other Facts Supporting the Use of Other than Full and Open Competition: None. 10.Listing of Sources that Expressed, in Writing, an Interest in the Acquisition: None 11.A Statement of the Actions, if any, the Agency May Take to Remove or Overcome any Barriers to Competition before Making subsequent acquisitions for the supplies or services required: None, for reasons stated above. 12.Requirements Certification: I certify that the requirement outlined in this justification is a Bona Fide Need of the Department of Veterans Affairs and that the supporting data under my cognizance, which are included in the justification, are accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief. Approvals in accordance with FAR 6.304 a.Contracting Officer's Certification: (required) I certify that the foregoing justification is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief. ___________________________ ________________________ Rusty StevensonDate Contracting Officer NCO 21 b.NCM Designee: I certify the justification meets requirements for other than full and open competition. _____________________________ ________________________ Mark MikusDate Supervisor, Services Team Contracting Officer NCO 21
 

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