William Jennings Bryan Dorn Veterans Admin Medical Center, Chief, Acquisition & Facilities Planning Service(90C), 6439 Garners Ferry Road, Columbia, SC 29209-1639

Q -- NURSE SERVICES SOL RFQ 544-052-00 DUE 053100 POC Virgil Thompson, Contract Specialist at 803/695-6783 This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial services prepared in accordance with the format in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation. Quotations are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued. This solicitation is issued as a Request for Quotation (RFQ) and is being conducted under FAR 13.5 Test Program, simplified acquisition procedures, and a combination of FAR 12 and 13. The solicitation reference number is RFQ 544-052-00 and the incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 97-16. This acquisition is 100% set-aside for small businesses. The SIC Code is 8049 and the small business size standard is $5.0 million. ALL OFFERS ARE DUE MAY 31, 2000 3:00 p.m. local time. Submit written quotations (oral or facsimile quotations will not be considered) to Chief A&FPS (90C), Attn.: Virgil Thompson, WJB Dorn VA Medical Center, 6439 Garners Ferry Road, Columbia, South Carolina 29209-1639. If hand carried, deliver to: Chief A&FPS (90C), WJB Dorn VA Medical Center, Bldg. 22, Room 3B101, Columbia, South Carolina. Inquiries about this combined synopsis/solicitation should be forwarded by mail to the address above. Answers to questions of a substantive nature will be provided on the CBDnet as an amendment. The provisions at FAR 52.222-41 Service Contract Act of 1965, as Amended (May 1989) applies to this solicitation. Services to be performed include those of a Licensed Practical Nurse and Registered Nurse. U.S. Department of Labor Wage Determination has been requested for Greenville County, South Carolina and upon receipt by the Contracting Office, will be incorporated into this requirement. The WJB Dorn VA Medical Center intends to award a requirements contract for Registered Nurses (RN) and Licensed Practical Nurses (LPN) for treatment of eligible veterans and other eligible beneficiaries located at the Department of Veterans Affairs Greenville Outpatient Clinic, Greenville, South Carolina. This solicitation is for non-personal services. Supplies or Services and Prices/Costs: DESCRIPTION: The contractor shall provide an estimated (2) two RNs (estimated 40 hours per nurse) per week and an estimated (2) two LPNs (estimated 40 hours per nurse) per week in accordance with all terms, conditions, and provisions of this solicitation. There will be two Contract Line Item Numbers (CLIN) per year (CLIN 1 and 2). The CLIN for each year shall reflect Item 1: Registered Nurse, total estimated hours: 4000 per year, hourly rate; and Item 2: Licensed Practical Nurse, total estimated hours: 4000 per year, hourly rate quoted for the base year and each option year. Contract award will be made using price and other factors that offer the best value to the Government. Nurses providing services under this contract will comply with VA requirements for documentation of care in the paper record and computerized medical record as appropriate. Electronic entry and signing of orders is required as appropriate. Appropriate documentation of services will be performed within established time frames using computerized (CPRS) entry. The contractor's employees will be required to use the hospital computer system; including, but not limited to; checking electronic reports, entering consults and referrals, and utilizing electronic mail to receive and respond to inquiries. Nursing staff will practice in a primary care setting, providing care to scheduled and unscheduled patients. Contract staff will be working with and directed by VA nursing staff, physicians, and mid-level practitioners. Quotations will be considered only from offerors who are regularly established in the business called for and who are financially responsible and have the necessary personnel to furnish service in the volume required for all the items under this contract. The government intends to award a firm-fixed price, requirements contract to the offeror or offerorsdetermined to be most advantageous to the government. The government may make multiple-awards to the responsible offerors in accordance with FAR clause 52.216-27. Successful offeror shall meet all requirements of Federal, State, County, or City codes regarding operations of this type of service. SPECIAL CONTRACT REQUIREMENTS: Under the authority of Public Law 104-262 and 38 U.S.C 8153, the contractor agrees to provide Health Care Resources in accordance with the terms and conditions stated herein, to furnish to and at the Department of Veterans Affairs Greenville Outpatient Clinic, the services and prices specified in this contract. 1. SERVICES: a. The services specified in the Sections entitled Schedule of Supplies/Services and Special Contract Requirements may be changed by written modification to this contract. The modification will be prepared by the VA Contracting Officer and, prior to becoming effective, shall be approved by the VA Under Secretary for Health or his/her designee. b. The quality of care provided by the contractor's nurses shall meet or exceed the standards of professional nursing health care as identified by the Joint Commission of Accreditation for Hospital Organizations. c. The services to be performed by the contractor will be under the direction of the VA Nurse Manager and will not be in any supervisory position during the term of the contract. d. The contractor's personnel shall not be considered a VA employee for any purpose. 2. TERM OF CONTRACT: This contract is effective from date of award, estimated award date is July 1, 2000, through June 30, 2001 with (2) two option years that may be exercised. The contract is subject to the availability of VA funds. No service shall be performed by the contractor after September 30, each year until the contracting officer authorizes such services in writing. 3. QUALIFICATIONS: Personnel assigned by the Contractor to perform the services covered by this contract shall be licensed and BCLS certified in a State, Territory, or Commonwealth of the United States or the District of Columbia. All licenses held by the personnel working on this contract shall be full and unrestricted licenses. The qualifications of such personnel shall also be subject to review by the VA Chief of Staff and approval by the VA Facility Director. Nurses must be graduates of an accredited school of nursing, approved by the state at the time the program was completed. Individuals must meet physical requirements to perform the full range of duties. Two years experience in general nursing with some outpatient experience is preferred. 4. WORK HOURS: a. The services covered by this contract shall be furnished by the contractor as defined herein. The contractor will not be required, except in case of emergency, to furnish such services during off-duty hours as described below. b. The following terms have the following meanings: (1) Work hours: Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. -- 4:30 p.m. (2) National Holidays: The 10 holidays observed by the Federal Government are: New Years Day Martin Luther Kings Birthday Presidents Day Memorial Day Independence Day Labor Day Columbus Day Veterans Day Thanksgiving Christmas and any other day specifically declared by the President of the United States to be a national holiday. (3) Off-Duty hours: Friday through Monday, 4:30 p.m. -- 8:00 a.m. 5. SCHEDULING: The VA reserves the right to cancel, change any scheduled shift of any personnel and will provide the contractor with (30) thirty days notice of any changes that increase the requirement and (15) fifteen days notice of any changes that decrease the requirement. This contract shall provide maximum flexibility to the VA Nurse Manager in scheduling. The contractor shall provide a point of contact authorized to conduct scheduling changes, additions and cancellations. 6. CONTRACTOR RESPONSIBILITES: The contractor will provide the VA Nurse Manager proof of any staff working under this contract current licensure and proof of TB skin testing prior to them reporting to the VA. Contractor's staff will be subject to random drug testing at VA's expense. The contractor is required to provide immediate notification if there is pending or has been any action pending with the State Board. The contractor will ensure personnel complete Nursing Service Basic Orientation provided by the VA. The training is approximately four hours and will be held at the Greenville Outpatient Clinic, Greenville, South Carolina. The contractor shall ensure a proper dress code (uniforms or scrubs must be worn and will not be provided by the VA) and conduct of employees. Payments for any leave, including sick, vacation, holiday, etc. are the responsibility of the contractor. 7. INVOICES: Contractor will submit monthly, in arrears, invoices for payment of services rendered that month to Chief, Fiscal Service (04), WJB Dorn VA Medical Center, 6439 Garners Ferry Road, Columbia, SC 29209-1639. 8. 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: -- workers compensation -- professional liability insurance -- health examinations -- income tax withholding, and -- social security payments. The parties agree that the contractor, its employees, agents and subcontractors shall not be considered VA employees for any purpose. 9. RECORD KEEPING: The VA operated facility shall establish and maintain a record keeping system that will record the hours worked by the contractor's employee(s). Contractor's employee(s) shall report to the Nurse Manager, or designee upon arrival at the VA operated facility. 10. MONITORING PROCEDURES: At the time of contract award the Contracting Officer will appoint a Contracting Officer Representative (COR) or alternate designee to assist with the contract monitoring requirements. The contractor will be required to carry the following types and amounts of insurance throughout the contract period: Worker's Compensation and Employers Liability ($100,000), General Liability ($500,000 per occurrence). The contractor shall be required to sign an attendance log upon reporting to work and departing from work. The Contracting Officer's Representative (COR), as designated by the Contracting Officer shall be the VA official responsible for verifying contract compliance. After contract award, any incidents of contractor noncompliance as evidenced by the monitoring procedures shall be forwarded immediately to the Contracting Officer. 11. KEY PERSONNEL AND TEMPORARY EMERGENCY SUBSTITUTIONS: The Contractor shall assign to this contract the following key personnel: During the first ninety (90) days of performance, the Contractor shall make NO substitutions of key personnel unless the substitution is necessitated by illness, death, or termination of employment. The Contractor shall notify the Contracting Officer, in writing, within 15 calendar days after the occurrence of any of these events and provide the information required by paragraph (c) below. After the initial 90-day period of the contract, the Contractor shall submit the information required by paragraph (c) to the Contracting Officer at least 15 days prior to making any permanent substitutions. The Contractor shall provide a detailed explanation of the circumstances necessitating the proposed substitutions, complete resumes for the proposed substitutes, and any additional information requested by the Contracting Officer. Proposed substitutes shall have comparable qualifications to those of the persons being replaced. The Contracting Officer will notify the Contractor within 15 calendar days after receipt of all required information of the decision on the proposed substitutes. The contract will be modified to reflect any approved changes of key personnel. For temporary substitutions where the key person will not be reporting to work for (3) three consecutive work days or more, the Contractor will provide a qualified replacement for the key person. This substitute shall have comparable qualifications to the key person. Any period exceeding two weeks will require the procedure as stated above. Full text of clauses and provisions are available at Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR): http://www.arnet.gov/References/References.html and Veterans Affairs Acquisition Regulations (VAAR): http://www.va.gov/oa&mm/vaar. The following provisions apply to this acquisition and may be obtained from the web: 52.212-1 Instructions to Offerors Commercial Items; FAR 52.212-2, Evaluation-Commercial Items: The following factors shall be used to evaluate quotations: a. Offerors shall submit with its quotation a detailed plan describing its ability to furnish (2) two RNs and (2) two LPNs to include a time frame and schedule for providing the required personnel. b. Offerors shall submit with its quotation a contingency plan to be used in the event of unexpected absences by contract personnel and/or at the VA's request the replacement of unacceptable contract personnel. c. Price. All evaluation factors other than cost or price, when combined, are approximately equal to cost or price. Award may be made without discussions, therefore offerors are encouraged to offer the best price at the time of submitting initial offers; FAR 52.217-5 Evaluation of Options in Solicitation; 52.212-3 Offeror Representations and Certifications-Commercial Items; 52.204-3 Taxpayer Identification Number; 52.204-6 Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) Number and VAAR 852.219-70 Veteran-Owned Small Business; 852.233-70 Protest Content; 852.233-71 Alternate Protest Procedure; 852.270-1 Representatives of the contracting officers. The following clauses apply to this acquisition and may be obtained from the web: FAR 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions Commercial Items; 52.203-3 Gratuities; 52.216-18 Ordering. Such orders may be issued for the base year, one (1) year from the date of award plus two (2) option years that may be exercised; 52.216-19 Order Limitations. Minimum total hours per year for Register Nurses: 1000 hours; Maximum total hours per year for Registered Nurses: 4000; Minimum total hours per year for Licensed Practical Nurses: 1000 hours; Maximum total hours per year for Licensed Practical Nurses: 4000 hours; 52.216-21 Requirements; 52.217-8 Option to Extend Services; 52.224-1 Privacy Act Notification; 52.224-2 Privacy Act; 52.237-7 Indemnification and Medical Liability Insurance. ($500,000 per occurrence) ; VAAR 852.216-70 Estimated Quantities for Requirements Contracts; 852.237-70 Contractor Responsibilities (as required by the laws of the State of South Carolina); 852.270-4 Commercial Advertising; 852.271-70 Services Provided Beneficiaries; 52.212-5 Contract terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders-Commercial Items applies to this acquisition. In addition to clause 52.212-5, the Contracting Officer has determined the following FAR clauses cited in the clause are applicable to this acquisition: 52.203-6 Restrictions on Subcontractor Sales to the Government, with Alternate I; 52-217-9 Option to Extend the Term of the Contract; 52.219-8 Utilization of Small Business Concerns; 52.219-14 Limitations on Subcontracting; 52.222-21 Prohibition of Segregated Facilities, 52.222-26 Equal Opportunity; 52.222-35-Affirmative Action for Disabled Veterans and Veterans of the Vietnam Ear; 52.222-36 Affirmative Action for Workers and Disabilities; 52.222-37 Employment Reports on Disabled Veterans and Veterans of the Vietnam Era; 52-232-19 Availability of Funds for the Next Fiscal Year; 52.232-34 Payment by Electronic Funds Transfer -- Other than Central Contractor Registration. The offeror shall submit a completed copy of provisions at 52.212-3 Offeror Representations and Certifications-Commercial Items; 52.204-3 Taxpayer Identification Number; 52.204-6 Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) Number and 852.219-70 Veteran-Owned Small Business with its quotation. Posted 04/27/00 (W-SN449373). (0118)

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