RECOVERY - Justification to Modify the National Health Service Corps (NHSC) Recruitment, Training, and Support Center (RTSC) Contract

The Health Resources and Services Administration, Division of Procurement Management (DPM), intends to negotiate on a sole source basis with B L Seamon Corporation, 9001 Edmonston Road, Suite 200, Greenbelt, MD 20770 to modify Contract HHSH230200732008C entitled, "National Health Service Corps (NHSC) Recruitment, Training, and Support Center (RTSC) Contract." The purpose of the NHSC RTSC contract is to provide support to the NHSC by assisting sites who wish to make application to the NHSC for inclusion on the list of eligible NHSC service sites for NHSC clinicians and matching those clinicians to NHSC approved vacancies while considering program requirements and participant preferences to maintain clinician retention. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) provides $300 million to the NHSC to support health professions educational loan repayment and scholarship. A key component of the ARRA is the creation and preservation of primary health care jobs through the NHSC Loan Repayment Program. Through ARRA, the NHSC is required to recruit and place more than 3,300 additional clinicians to serve and provide primary health care services to our Nation's neediest communities within an 18-month period. The bulk of these awards will be made within the first 6-12 months. NHSC clinicians cannot be matched to a site that is not an NHSC approved site or to a site that does not have an approved vacancy. The NHSC maintains a single "Job Opportunities List" which contains approved vacancies. Updates to the vacancy list are provided to the NHSC by the contractor through the NHSC RTSC contract (contract HHSH230200732008C). No new loan repayment awards can be made without the vacancy management services provided under the NHSC RTSC contract. By modifying the contract to add services related to ARRA funded awards, clinicians participating under both the core annual contract appropriations and the ARRA appropriations can be matched to appropriate sites in time to receive awards during the contract performance period, fulfilling the intent of the ARRA. As the prime contractor for the NHSC RTSC contract, B L Seamon Corporation is the only source that can provide the required services without substantial duplication of costs to the Government that is not expected to be recovered through competition and without unacceptable delays in the fulfilling the agency's requirements. The NHSC RTSC contractor provides critical support to site approval, vacancy management (adding vacancies to the list after approval, eliminating vacancies after they have been filled), award process, clinician placement and service monitoring. The first NHSC Loan Repayment Program awards supported by the ARRA funds are due to be made in May of 2009. Without this contract support, NHSC Loan Repayment awards that provide clinicians to deliver primary health services in communities of greatest need cannot be made. This contract modification would provide the same level of critical support, which current participants receive, for clinicians who are supported by ARRA appropriations. The requested modification does not change the nature of the activities provided by the current contractor; rather, it simply increases the volume of services in order to accommodate the additional 3300 ARRA funded clinicians. No other source can provide the necessary services without substantial duplication of costs and without unacceptable delays. Therefore, as set forth in 41.U.S.C. 253(c) (1), as implemented by FAR Part 6.302-1, the statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition is "only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements". This is a notice of intent, not a request for competitive proposals. Responsible sources may submit a capability statement, proposal, or quotation, which shall be considered by the agency. The Justification for Other than Full and Open Competition (JOFOC) will be posted within 14 days after award of the contract modification. Because any modification that results from this JOFOC will use ARRA funds, an ARRA intent to negotiate will be posted prior to negotiations of a resulting modification. The contact person for this requirement is Michele McDermott, Contract Specialist, Division of Procurement Management (DPM), Parklawn Building, Room 13A-19, 5600 Fishers Lane, Rockville, MD 20857-5600; phone number 301/443-1798; fax 301/443-5462.