Lydina Battle

Lydina Battle serves as a Contracting Officer within the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, where she manages the acquisition of analytical, research, and policy support services critical to advancing evidence-based health and human services policy. Her procurement portfolio centers on enabling data-driven decision-making through contracts for program evaluation, policy modeling, and technical analysis, ensuring that federal initiatives are grounded in rigorous, independent research. She plays a pivotal role in aligning acquisition strategy with the agency’s mission to strengthen the design and impact of national health programs through objective, high-quality contracting. Her contractor relationships are primarily with firms specializing in policy research, data analytics, and scientific support services. While no single vendor dominates her portfolio, she consistently engages with contractors offering methodological expertise in social science research, health economics, and public health evaluation. Her approach emphasizes competitive, open bidding, fostering a diverse supplier base capable of delivering complex, non-commercial analytical deliverables under performance-based contract structures. Lydina demonstrates a strong preference for open competition, with 92.9% of her awards issued without set-aside designations, reflecting a focus on technical capability over socioeconomic categorization. However, she maintains a measured commitment to small business participation, with 7.1% of awards directed toward Women-Owned Small Businesses, aligning with agency goals to promote diversity in the contractor pool without compromising procurement integrity. Her primary NAICS focus areas include Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (541712), Educational Support Services (611710), and Document Preparation Services (561410), underscoring her specialization in procuring qualitative and quantitative research services, data synthesis, and policy documentation. She frequently sources technical expertise in health policy analysis, survey design, and statistical modeling, ensuring that HHS programs are informed by credible, timely, and methodologically sound evidence.