NATIONAL MEDICAL RESPONSE TEAM- NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION (NMRT-NCR) PREPAREDNESS AND RESPONSE SERVICES

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), Program Support Center, Division of Acquisition Management intends to issue a Request for Proposal (RFP) sometime early in 2010, on behalf of the DHHS, Office of the Secretary, Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) Office of Preparedness and Emergency Operations (OPEO) National Disaster Medical System (NDMS) Operations Branch. I. Purpose: Due to the location of the center of government in Washington, DC, NDMS, working with several Washington DC metropolitan area fire departments and the Council of Governments (COG), has developed a specialized medical response team specifically for use in the Washington, DC metropolitan area. NDMS had designated this specialized team as the National Medical Response Team-National Capital Region (NMRT-NCR) and assisted in developing this team as a WMD response unit to support the Federal response to a terrorism incident within the Washington, DC metropolitan area. The Washington Metropolitan area is defined by the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments as the National Capital Region (NCR), which is in turn defined as the following jurisdictions: The City of Alexandria, Arlington County, The District of Columbia, Fairfax County, Loudoun County, Montgomery County, Prince George’s County, Prince William County, and all included municipalities. The National Capital Region was created pursuant to the National Capital Planning Act of 1952 (Title 40, U.S.C., Sec. 71). HHS plans to enter into a contract with a qualified organization that can meet the mission of providing mass or individual decontamination of victims within the National Capital Region contaminated by chemical, biological, or radiological agents; provide medical care and/or stabilization for these victims; assist in triage and treatment before and after decontamination; provide technical assistance to local EMS officials; and, pre-deploy when directed, as a result of a credible or potential terrorist threat. Throughout this notice, the terms “qualified organization” of “organization” is considered synonymous with “NMRT-NCR” and “Contractor.” Though the RFP will not be a set-aside, all qualified Small Business Concerns, including 8(a), veteran-owned small business, service-disabled veteran owned small business, HUBZone small business, small disadvantaged business, and women owned small business are encouraged to submit a proposal. The resulting contract will be for the readiness, preparedness, and response services of the qualified organization. The organization shall be ready to deploy personnel and material for immediate use in responding to a WMD or mass casualty incident within the NCR. The vehicles, products and other specialized materials and stored and maintained under this contract shall be known as the “HHS WMD Response Cache”. The exact location of this storage site shall be “FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY” and shall be referred to as the “HHS WMD Response Cache Site.” The purpose of this contract is twofold: To assure the readiness of the qualified organization so that it is prepared to provide qualified, competent personnel in support of ASPR/OPEO response requirements under the National Response Framework (NRF). This includes preparations for incidents involving WMD, National Special Security Events (NSSE) and/or other designated major disasters, or emergencies, including public health emergencies. This contract enables the qualified organization to maintain a condition of high operational readiness and identifies key areas for organizational personnel to focus continued preparedness efforts. The second purpose is to facilitate the deployment and services of the qualified organization in support of public health emergencies (PHE), National Special Security Events (NSSE), and other special events in the National Capital Region. This statement of work sets forth the requirements for activation, response, command and control, and reimbursement for services of the qualified organization during special events, public health emergencies, and periods of heightened readiness for potential terrorist attacks, in particular, for the response to WMD incidents. When directed by the Contracting Officer, the qualified organization shall pre-stage or deploy personnel and material for immediate use in responding to a WMD or mass casualty incident within the NCR. This contract will have the following objectives: provide definitive administrative and program management, support, training, and equipment cache preparedness, and to provide for cache maintenance. The organization shall be responsible for maintaining all team equipment and supplies. The procurement of all organizational cache equipment and pharmaceuticals is the responsibility of OPEO Logistics. II. Department of Health and Human Services Responsibilities a. Procure all cache equipment and pharmaceuticals, excluding non-cache consumables such as office, cleaning, and disposable medical supplies. b. Provide the organization with an inventory of products and quantities to be maintained by OPEO Logistics in the equipment cache. Any changes necessary will be made at the next scheduled visit to the cache and communicated to the organization, in writing, as modifications to the original equipment cache list. c. Determine the frequency of inventories to be conducted on the organizational equipment cache. d. Obtain lease for and provide access for organizational personnel to cache storage, training and office facilities, including necessary identification badges, in order to conduct cache maintenance, training, and team administration activities. e. Review, approve, and adopt organization-related products, including technical manuals, operational procedures, training curriculum and supporting manuals, and other requirements for the organization. f. Approve and implement policies, procedures, and organizational evaluation criteria. g. Review and/or approve expenditure reports, performance reports, personnel records, training records, organizational evaluation documents, equipment cache and excess property inventories and other deliverables required by HHS. h. Provide the organization with a written task order with specific procedures and actions to be taken by the organization during a response or special event. III. Selected Organization’s Tasks Team Administration and Management a. Maintain the capability to deploy the organization in accordance with a Mission Assignment and/or task order issued by ASPR/OPEO. The organization is required to be prepared to initiate a response within 2-hours of receiving the task order for an incident within the Washington, DC, metropolitan. b. Provide sufficient staff for management and administration of the organization’s day-to-day activities to accomplish required supervisory, administrative, training, and logistical duties. Primary tasks include: 1) Program management 2) Administrative support 3) Training coordination, instruction and support 4) Logistics management and accountability c. Fund personnel salaries and expenses relating to the organization’s development, advancement, management, record-keeping, inventory and maintenance of the organizational equipment cache. Also included is correspondence with organization members and parties who support the organization’s activities and similar management and administrative tasks. Equipment maintenance activities must be performed at the equipment cache storage site. d. Ensure that personnel salaries and expenses relating to the organization’s administration, development, and training readiness and activation response activities are paid in accordance with any established Sponsoring and Participating Agency policies in a timely manner. e. Provide a roster (in a Microsoft Excel or compatible format) of the organization’s personnel and an inventory list (in a Microsoft Excel or compatible format) of the organizational equipment cache. This information shall be submitted on an annual basis. f. Maintain readiness to support National Special Security and other special events, as directed by HHS. g. Maintain a system to manage (control, use, preserve, protect, repair and maintain) Government property in its possession. The organization shall initiate and maintain the processes, systems, procedures, records, and methodologies necessary for effective control of Government property, consistent with voluntary consensus standards and/or industry-leading practices and standards for Government property management except where inconsistent with law or regulation. During the period of performance, the organization shall disclose any significant changes to their property management system to the HHS Property Administrator prior to implementation. The organization’s responsibility extends from the initial receipt of property, through stewardship, custody, and use, until formally relieved of responsibility by authorized means, including delivery, consumption, expending, disposition, or via a completed investigation, evaluation, and final determination for lost, damaged, destroyed, or stolen property. This requirement applies to all Government property under the organization’s accountability, stewardship, possession or control, including its vendors or subcontractors. Training a. Recruit, train and maintain a full roster of personnel as recommended by and approved by HHS. The contract will provide for a maximum staffing level of 225 deployable personnel. Under the terms of this contract, the organization must be prepared to field response teams of varying sizes, with a standard deployment contingent of 75 personnel. Deployment of larger or smaller contingents will be at the discretion of HHS, in coordination with the organization. Personnel with qualifications/credentials in the following specialties must be included on the team roster: • Physician • Physician Assistant • Nurse Practitioner • Registered Nurse • Emergency Medical Technician- Paramedic • Emergency Medical Technician- Basic • Respiratory Therapist • Registered Pharmacist • Pharmacy Technician • Mental Health Specialist/Licensed Clinical Social Worker • Hazardous Materials Specialist • Hazardous Materials Technician • Logistics Specialist • Equipment Maintenance Specialist • Communications Specialist • Safety Officer • Administrative Specialist • Finance/Administration Officer • Team Commander b. Conduct at least one full field or mobilization exercise, involving not less than 75 personnel, each calendar year. c. Within 180 days of the contract award date, ensure that all of the organization’s members have completed the requirements below. Each team member must maintain a printed certificate of completion in their team personnel file or through their respective jurisdiction for each required course. The following on-line courses are required: ICS 100, ICS 200, ICS 700, ICS 800b. State-offered National Response Framework (NRF), National Incident Management System (NIMS) or equivalent certificates may be substituted for the specified courses. d. Provide organization-related or required training for personnel, including the delivery of local training courses or other courses specifically required by the organization’s mission and the Project Officer. e. Ensure training and exercise activities of the organization meet applicable NDMS guidelines, specifications, and requirements. Ensure that training records for all personnel are maintained in a central location and are available for review by the Project Officer within a reasonable time period. f. Attend NDMS-sponsored or approved meetings, conferences, and training sessions and other activities that are directly related to the NDMS NMRT program, including the annual HHS Integrated Medical, Public Health, Preparedness and Response Training Summit. All travel funds should be itemized on organizational invoices for reimbursement. Reimbursement for travel under this contract shall include proof-of-travel (e.g., copies of plane or train tickets) and any other supporting documentation. Invoices/requests for payment shall be submitted to the Project Officer for verification. All travel under this contract shall be conducted in the most economical manner available. Medical Screening and Credentialing a. Ensure the organization’s personnel have the required current medical credentials. HHS will provide credential requirements in writing to the organization. The organization accepts each individual jurisdictional requirement necessary to maintain certification in member’s respective disciplines. It is the responsibility of each jurisdiction to notify the organization, should one of their members not maintain their certifications or credentials. b. Conduct medical screening of team personnel, as required by OSHA and other relevant regulations, and when not part of the individual’s normal work responsibilities. Non-Cache Equipment and Consumable Supplies Acquisition a. Procure non-cache list consumables such as office, cleaning, and disposable medical supplies necessary for cache maintenance and contract administration. Equipment Cache Maintenance a. Maintain the organizational equipment cache in a state of readiness for rapid deployment. The organization shall ensure quality assurance procedures are followed and shall maintain the organizational team cache, along with team medical supplies and team pharmaceuticals. This cache shall be designated and approved by HHS. Equipment in the cache shall consist entirely of government furnished property. The cache shall be stored on an HHS-controlled site designated by HHS. The organization shall organize all quantities of supplies and material for the organizational cache in standardized storage configurations that are consistent with temperature, moisture, and light exposure specifications of the various products. This is important in order to guarantee product integrity, as well as timely and efficient deployment. b. Perform all manufacturers’ recommended maintenance and repair for organizational equipment acquired and specifically identified on the OPEO approved Equipment Cache List. Equipment maintenance activities must be performed at the equipment cache storage site. c. All medical material shall be subject to the overall regulations set forth by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). d. Receive, store, and issue controlled substances, in accordance with all applicable Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) regulations, any other applicable laws, and any applicable policies for pharmaceutical product storage. Response Operations a. The selected organization shall provide a fully operational National Medical Response Team (NMRT) for the National Capital Region (NCR). b. The organization shall deploy organizational personnel (up to 75 persons) in accordance with a task order issued by HHS.. The organization is required to initiate a response within 2 hours of receiving an task order to an incident within the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, unless otherwise mutually agreed at the time of notification. Any time the team is unavailable for deployment, the organization shall immediately notify HHS. c. The organization shall deploy the NDMS-approved equipment cache and vehicles during an emergency incident or special event. d. The organization shall provide for the physical security of the deployed cache, which shall be secured in accordance with applicable organizational field security procedures and requirements. e. Controlled substances shall be issued and used in accordance with all applicable Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) regulations, any other applicable laws or policies. f. The organization shall ensure that the deployed organizational personnel report to the designated HHS representative upon arrival at the designated incident staging site. g. The organization shall request any additional logistical support from HHS upon activation and before arriving at the staging site. h. The organization shall submit an invoice, no later than 30 days after conclusion of incident, for all organizational expenses relating to the activation, deployment and use of the organization at an emergency incident or special event. IV. Equipment a. Equipment and vehicles purchased with Federal funds or provided by HHS shall be for the exclusive use of the program and shall not be used for normal day-to-day operations of any other participating agency or entity. Use of this equipment or vehicles for a local or regional response may be requested from HHS by the organization.. b. HHS has established a specific vehicle marking policy and all components of the Department must adhere to this standard. This requirement includes vehicles purchased with contract funds and used for responses. HHS will supply the logos to the organization according to the HHS vehicle logo and striping policy. However, the organization will be required to apply the striping according to specifications provided by HHS and use contract funding to address this requirement, as directed. No other decals, lettering or other markings are permitted to be applied to designated response vehicles, unless approved by HHS. c. HHS shall be notified immediately of any request for use of the stand-alone equipment cache. If such a request is approved, the organization is responsible for funding and performing the replacement, re-supply, and/or repair of equipment used or consumed during activities not associated with the program and its return to an immediate state of readiness as soon as possible. d. Any equipment and/or vehicles purchased by HHS and provided to the organization in support of its mission during the performance period of this contract shall be considered government furnished equipment, the title of which shall reside with HHS. V. Eligible Expenditures Eligible expenditures for reimbursement include salaries and benefits (not including backfill), fuel, equipment and consumable supplies, and related expenditures. Salaries and benefits submitted for reimbursement must not exceed those of the responding member’s normal salary and benefits according to the terms of employment of their participating agency. VI. Period of Performance The period of performance for this contract will be 12 months, beginning on the date of award. The proposed contract will also include four 1-year option periods, to be exercised at the discretion of HHS, through the Contracting Officer. The RFP will be posted on FBO approximately 45 days after this notice is issued. Only electronic copies will be available. Proposals will be due at a minimum of 30 days after the RFP is issued. THIS IS ONLYA PRESOLICITATION NOTICE. THIS IS NOT A SOLICITATION. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP), INVITATION FOR BID (IFB), REQUEST FOR QUOTES (RFQ), REQUEST FOR APPLICATION (RFA) OR AN ANNOUNCEMNT OF A SOLICITATION AND DOES NOT ASSUME THE GOVERNMENT WILL AWARD A CONTRACT OR PROCEED WITH ANY OF THE ABOVE SOLICITATIONS IN THE NEAR FUTURE.