Support Services for Epidemiology - IDIQ Ceiling Increase

THIS IS A NOTICE OF INTENT TO AWARD WITHOUT PROVIDING FOR FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION. THIS IS NOT A SOLICITATION OR A REQUEST FOR COMPETITIVE PROPOSALS. The purpose of this announcement is to notify all interested parties that the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) intends to award a contract modification to increase the ceiling of Contract HHSN273201600003I with contractor Social & Scientific Systems, Inc. (SSS), a DLH Holdings Company by a total of ten million dollars ($10,000,000.00) on a sole-source basis pursuant to 10 U.S.C 2304(c)(1), Only One Responsible Source. The objective is to raise the ceiling to ensure continuation of mission critical research while the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) procurement team continues to pursue the re-competition of these services under a new full and open cost reimbursement contract. This notice is being published by NIEHS in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 5.201 and 5.204 requiring notice of a proposed contract action. This is NOT a request for competitive proposals. The statutory authority for this sole source action is 41 U.S.C.3304(a)(1) as implemented by FAR 6.302-1, Only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements. Award is subject to approval of the Justification and Approval for Sole Source (J&A). BACKGROUND The purpose of this Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract is to provide epidemiological, scientific, technical, data management, managerial, clerical, and statistical support to Principal Investigators within the Epidemiology Branch, Division of Intramural Research (NIEHS). The contract requires the Contractor to assist the Government by identifying and enrolling subjects, and administering, managing, and conducting epidemiological studies designed and conducted by the Epidemiology Branch (EB) Principal Investigators (PIs) alone, or in collaboration with other scientists inside or outside of NIEHS, and by carrying out directed analyses of the data and biological and environmental samples from such studies, for ultimate publication by EB Investigators in scientific journals. The Contractor will be expected to provide oversight for projects in remote locations, conducting site visits as needed and maintaining close contact with research partners throughout the world. The workload is variable, and The Contractor must have the ability to scale up or contract as required to meet needs that change over time and with the stage of ongoing research. SSS is considered the only contractor that has a comprehensive understanding of the current technologies used at NIEHS and can meet the NIEHS's needs for the remainder of the period of performance of this contract. SSS currently manages all open task orders under this IDIQ contract. Award to another source during the same period of performance would result in substantial disruption, unnecessary costs to the Government, and unacceptable delays in fulfilling the agency's requirements and could not be expected to be recovered through competition. By utilizing the incumbent contractor for this sole source action, the NIEHS can continue day-to-day operations and avoid disruptions to mission essential work. Once the Justification and Approval for Sole Source (J&A) is approved, this action will serve to change the IDIQ contract's overall price ceiling via a modification to the contract. Notwithstanding the stated intent, if firms believe they can fully meet the Government's requirement they may submit a written capabilities statement (NOT TO EXCEED 3 PAGES). The capabilities statement must contain sufficient documentation to establish a bona fide capability to fulfill the requirement and must be received by the response date listed in this posting. A determination not to compete this requirement, based upon responses to this notice, is solely within the discretion of the Government. NIEHS will not be responsible for any costs incurred by interested parties in responding to this notice. Questions regarding this notice can be sent via email to Adam Muhsin at adam.muhsin@nih.gov. ONLY EMAIL RESPONSES WILL BE ACCEPTED. Thank you for your interest in NIEHS Procurements.