Sources Sought: Optometrist Services to be provided at the Woodrow Wilson Keeble Memorial Health Care Center, Sisseton, SD.

Sources Sought: Optometry Services to be provided for 12 months at the Woodrow Wilson Keeble Memorial Health Care Center (WWKMHCC), Sisseton, SD.

Sources Sought Notice Number: IHS-SS-26-1525158

This Sources Sought Notice is for informational and planning purposes only and shall not be construed as a solicitation, an obligation or commitment by the Indian Health Service.

This notice is intended strictly for market research to determine the availability of Indian Small Businesses Economic Enterprise (ISBEE), Indian Economic Enterprises (IEE), or Other Small Businesses.

Your responses to the information requested will assist the Government in determining the appropriate acquisition method, including whether a set-aside is possible. The anticipated applicable NAICS code for this acquisition is 621320 – Offices of Optometrists.

1.0 BACKGROUND

The IHS is an agency within the Department of Health & Human Services and is responsible for providing federal health services to American Indians and Alaska Natives. The Indian Health Service provides a comprehensive health service delivery system for approximately 1.9 million American Indians and Alaska Natives who belong to 567 federally recognized tribes, in 35 states. The Indian Health Service Headquarters is located in Rockville, MD and then divided into twelve (12) physical areas:  Alaska, Albuquerque, Bemidji, Billings, California, Great Plains, Nashville, Navajo, Oklahoma, Phoenix, Portland, and Tucson.

The Great Plains Area Office (GPAO) works in conjunction with 19 Indian Health Service Units and Tribal Managed Service Units to provide health care to approximately 130,000 Native American located in North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, and Iowa.

WWKMHCC falls under the GPAO and provides medical care to approximately 7,000 tribal members living on the Lake Traverse Reservation. The Service Unit was built in 2007 to provide an expanded level of outpatient health care services specifically designed to meet the needs of our population. Services include:  Behavioral Health, Community Health, Dental, Laboratory, Nutrition Services, Optometry, Pharmacy, Physical Therapy, Public Health Nursing, Purchased & Referred Care Services, and Radiology.

2.0 OBJECTIVE

The primary objective of this project is to provide uninterrupted Optometry services to the Optometry Department at WWKMMHCC. The Contractor shall utilize up to two (2) contract optometrists to deliver services that are compatible with the facilities, equipment, and operating capacity of the Indian Health Service (IHS) Medical Service Unit. The scope of care shall be equivalent to that typically provided in a rural civilian practice of similar size.

3.0 SCOPE

Upon award, the Contractor shall locate, credential, and have available sufficient staffing to provide optometrist(s) coverage at the Service Unit during periods of permanent staffing absences. The Contractor(s) shall provide a full orientation of this scope of work to the Contract Optometrist prior to submitting the confirmation service agreement. 

The contract resulting from this solicitation shall:

1. Be a non-personal health care services contract under which the Contractor is an independent contractor.
2. Allow the Government to evaluate the quality of professional and administrative services provided, but retains no control over the medical, professional aspects of the services rendered (e.g., professional judgments, diagnosis for specific medical treatment).
3. Require the Contractor to indemnify the Government for any liability producing act or omission by the Contractor, its employees and agents occurring during contract performance.
4. Require the Contractor to maintain medical liability insurance, in the coverage amount acceptable to the Contracting Officer, which is not less than the amount normally prevailing within the local community for the medical specialty concerned. 
5. Require the Contractor to assume sole and exclusive responsibility for employee federal taxes, social security, unemployment insurance, and workman’s compensation.
6. Require the Contractor to provide daily compensation and travel reimbursements to each Contract Optometrist as appropriate.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST.  The Contractor shall not employ any person who is an employee of the United States Government if the employment of that person would create a conflict of interest. The Contractor shall not employ any person who is an employee of Health and Human Services (HHS) unless such a person seeks and receives approval in accordance with the Department of HHS. 

CONTINUITY OF SERVICES.  The Contract Optometrist’s services are considered vital to the Government and must be continued with minimal interruption. In order to minimize interrupted services, the Contractor shall exercise best efforts and cooperation to provide coverage during periods of permanent staff absences.

In the event the Contractor is unable to fulfill the requirements for whatever reason; the government reserves the right to fulfill its need outside of this contract. A written confirmation from the contractor indicating the inability to fulfill the request is immediately required. The government’s right to fulfill its need outside this contract(s) does not waive its right to the issuance of a cure notice nor does it waive its right to terminate.

4.0 CONTRACT REQUIREMENTS/ AND PERSONNEL QUALIFICATIONS

TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS

The Contractor shall possess the following:

1. Ability to provide qualified Optometrist coverage within a timely manner (see CANDIDATE PRESENTATION);
2. Ability to assist Contract Optometrists with completion of background investigation paperwork and credentialing in a timely manner to meet the established deadlines (see CANDIDATE PRESENTATION, PRIVILEGING REQUIREMENTS and CHARACTER INVESTIGATION - CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECK REQUIREMENT);
3. Ability to provide clinically competent Contract Optometrists who can interact with patients and clinical staff in a customer friendly and culturally sensitive manner.
4. Ability to provide Contract Optometrists who possess Electronic Health Record (EHR) experience.

CONTRACT OPTOMETRIST REQUIREMENTS

COMPUTER SKILLS.  Computer efficiency is required with documentation completed using the Computerized EHR.

ENGLISH LANGUAGE REQUIREMENT.  The Contract Optometrists shall read, understand, speak and write English fluently, and communicate with sufficient clarity to be understood by personnel and patients.

HEALTH REQUIREMENTS.  The Contract Optometrists shall not have any work or health restrictions which interfere with the performance of their services. The Contract Optometrists shall provide proof of current immunizations status, including Hep B, MMR, Varicella, Tdap, Influenza, COVID, current PPD within the past year, and if positive, a chest x-ray confirming no active disease and review of symptoms. The list of immunizations must be submitted and reviewed by the Infection Preventionist/Employee Health Nurse prior to working.

QUALIFICATIONS.  Contract Optometrist shall

1. Have a Doctor of Optometry degree from an educational program that is accredited by the Accreditation Council on Optometric Education (ACOE) at the time the degree was obtained;
2. Possess a current, active, unrestricted license to practice optometry from any of the 50 Unites States, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia or a territory of the United States;
3. Maintain continuing education/certification, and have a current Basic Life Support (BLS) certification; 
4. Have a one-year completion of a residency program in an institution accredited for such training; or one year of professional experience as an optometrist in the last 24 months;
5. Must meet all credentialing and background investigation requirements (see PRIVILEGING REQUIREMENTS and CHARACTER INVESTIGATION).

5.0 TYPE OF ORDER

The award for this service will be a firm fixed price non-personal service purchase order.

6.0 ANTICIPATED PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

Period of Performance: 12 months from date of award

7.0 PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

Woodrow Wilson Keeble Memorial Health Care Center, Indian Health Service, 100 Lake Traverse Drive, Sisseton, SD.

8.0 REPORT(S)/DELIVERABLES AND DELIVERY SCHEDULE

WORK SCHEDULE. Work shifts will typically be eight (8) hours and will be worked between the hours of 8:00am and 4:30pm with a one-half hour lunch break. The Contract Optometrist will provide care Monday through Friday, excluding government holidays.

GOVERNMENT HOLIDAYS

New Year’s Day                                    January 1

Martin Luther King’s Birthday               Third Monday in January

President’s Day                                    Third Monday in February

Memorial Day                                       Last Monday in May

Independence Day                               July 4

Labor Day                                             First Monday in September

Columbus Day                                      Second Monday October

Veteran’s Day                                       November 11

Thanksgiving Day                                 Fourth Thursday November 

Christmas Day                                      December 25

The typical work week will be 40-45 hours per week. Work hours will be scheduled by the Optometrist Supervisor or designee to correspond to the needs of the facility and are subject to change. Up to thirty (30) minutes may be allowed at the end of the scheduled shift to accommodate unexpected patient care. Any work that is performed beyond this will need approval from the Optometry Supervisor or designee.  Any unpaid leave requested by the Contract Optometrist must be made in advance to the COR to accommodate the 3-month patient appointment schedule.

SCHEDULING

ADMINISTRATIVE TIME.  On the last scheduled working day, the Contract Optometrist shall receive administrative time to ensure that all documentation is completed before departing, and shall check out with the Health Information Management (HIM) department to confirm completion of all records.

PATIENT SCHEDULING.  Facility personnel will assist with patient scheduling. Patient appointments will typically be scheduled for thirty (30) minutes in length except for those appointments requiring additional time as determined by the facility.

TIMESHEETS. The Contract Optometrist will be responsible to report to work at the scheduled time. All submitted timesheets will be verified with the invoices before payment is processed. Only hours authorized by the Optometry Supervisor or designee will be authorized for payment. 

9.0 PAYMENT

Invoice Processing Platform (IPP)

The Indian Health Service (IHS) is in the process of implementing an electronic invoicing system in compliance with the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) M-15-19 memorandum "Improving Government Efficiency and Saving Taxpayer Dollars Through Electronic Invoicing" directing Federal agencies to adopt electronic invoicing as the primary means to disburse payment to vendors. Invoices submitted under any award resulting from this solicitation will be required to utilize the Invoice Processing Platform (IPP) in accordance with HHSAR 352.232-71, Electronic Submission and Processing of Payment Requests.

IPP is a secure, web-based electronic invoicing system provided by the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Bureau of the Fiscal Service, in partnership with the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis (FRSTL). Respondents to this solicitation are encouraged to register an account with IPP if they have not already done so. If your organization is already registered to use IPP, you will not be required to re-register- however, we encourage you make sure your organization and designated IPP user accounts are valid and up to date.

The IPP website address is: https://www.ipp.gov

If you require assistance registering or IPP account access, please contact the IPP Helpdesk at (866) 973-3131 (M-F 8AM to 6PM ET), or IPPCustomerSupport@fiscal.treasury.gov

"Should the contractor feel that use of the IPP would be unduly burdensome, their response to this solicitation should include an explanation of this position for a determination by the contracting officer".

The Government reserves the right to accept or reject services, if the level of performance is unacceptable.

10.0 Capability Statement/Information:

Interested parties are expected to review this notice and attached statement of work to familiarize itself with the requirements of this project. Failure to do so will be at your firm’s own risk. The following information shall be included in the capability statement:

1. A general overview of the respondent’s opinions about the difficulty and/or feasibility of the potential requirement, and any information regarding innovative ideas or concepts.

2. Information in sufficient detail of the respondent’s (a) current capability and capacity to perform the work; (b) prior completed events of similar nature/size; (c) organizational experience and management capability; and (d) examples of prior completed Government contracts and other related information.

3. The respondents’ UEI number, organization name, address, point of contact, and size and type of business (e.g., 8(a), HUBZone, etc.) Pursuant to the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code: 541380 - Testing Laboratories and Services.

4. Any other information that may be helpful in developing or finalizing the requirements of the potential acquisition.

5. The capability statement shall not exceed 10 single-sided pages (including all attachments, resumes, etc.) presented in single-space and using a 12-point font size minimum, in either Microsoft Word or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF), with 8-1/2 by 11-inch paper size, and 1-inch top, bottom, left and right margins.

6. All proprietary information should be marked as such. Statements should also include an indication of current certified small business status; this indication should be clearly marked on the first page of your capability statement (preferably placed under the eligible small business concern’s name and address). Responses will be reviewed only by IHS personnel and will be considered adequate responses to a solicitation.

11.0 Closing Statement

Point of Contact: Andrea Whipple, Purchasing Agent

Submission Instructions:

Interested parties shall submit capability via email to Andrea Whipple, at Andrea.Whipple@ihs.gov. Must include Sources Sought Number IHS-SS-26-1525158 in the Subject line. The due date for receipt of statements is July 2, 2026, 1:00 p.m. Central Time.

All responses must be received by the specified due date and time in order to be considered.

This notice is for information and planning purposes only and shall not be construed as a solicitation or as an obligation on the part of IHS.

IHS does not intend to award a contract on the basis of responses nor otherwise pay for the preparation of any information submitted. As a result of this notice, IHS may issue a Request for Quote (RFQ).

THERE IS NO SOLICITATION AVAILABLE AT THIS TIME. However, should such a requirement materialize, no basis for claims against IHS shall arise as a result of a response to this notice or IHS’s use of such information as either part of our evaluation process or in developing specifications for any subsequent requirement.

Disclaimer and Important Notes. This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in response. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. Any organization responding to this notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed to allow the Government to determine the organization’s qualifications to perform the work. Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. After a review of the responses received, a pre-solicitation synopsis and solicitation may be published in SAM.gov. However, responses to this notice will not be considered adequate responses to a solicitation.

Confidentiality. No proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information should be included in your response.