Description
CDC has a mission to protect America from health, safety, and security threats, both foreign and in the U.S. The mission of the National Center for Emerging and Zoontic Infectious Diseases (NCEZID), a component of CDC, is the prevention and control of infectious diseases, including rare but deadly diseases by conducting exemplary science, strengthening preparedness efforts, establishing public health policy, sharing vital health information with the public, and building partnerships. Lyme disease alone is estimated by CDC to account for nearly 500,000 cases of human illness every year in the United States, with the vast majority of cases occurring in the Northeast and Upper Midwest (Kugeler et al. 2015, 2021). Human exposure to infected Ixodes scapularis ticks, including the small and easily overlooked nymphal life stage which is considered to account for most human infections, is thought to occur commonly on residential properties, especially in the Northeast (Stafford et al. 2017, Mead et al. 2018). There has been a continued rise and geographical spread of human-biting ticks and tick-borne disease in the United States and there is an urgent need for improved tick control strategies to create tick-free residential properties and reduce human tick-bites and tick-borne disease acquired in this heavily used environment. Control of ticks on residential properties is the responsibility of the homeowners and performed either by homeowners or pest control firms they engage for this purpose (Eisen 2020, Jordan and Schulze The timing of acaricide applications is variable in operational tick control on residential properties (Jordan and Schulze 2020) and there are still gaps in the knowledge of optimal temporal application schemes to achieve sustained control of the primary pathogen-infected and human-biting life stages of Ixodes scapularis (nymphs active primarily in late spring and adults in the fall and early spring) while minimizing the amount of acaricide applied to the environment. Recent studies (Schulze and Jordan 2020a, b) have clarified the impact of temporally variable spring applications of acaricides on host-seeking Ixodes scapularis nymphs but the impact of fall applications on this tick species remain poorly understood despite some previous studies (Schulze et al. 2008, Elias et al. 2013) showing intriguing results including impact from fall acaricide applications not only on the adult ticks that are active during that part of the year but also on host-seeking nymphs in the following spring (presumably via impact in the fall on quiescent fed larvae or molted nymphs). Fall acaricide applications are of interest due to reduced potential for impact on pollinators and potential enhanced application efficacy with less foliage for broadcast sprays to penetrate. Additional research therefore is justified to clarify the value of fall acaricide applications in the control of Ixodes scapularis on residential properties. This will be a 12 month contract. The period of performance would begin on or before August 1, 2021. The NAICS code 541990 Research and Devlopment in the Physical, Engineering, Life Science (except nanotechnology and biotechnology). The vendor shall furnish all labor, materials and equipment necessary to conduct the work. The successful offeror is expected to possess the following minimum capabiilties to be able to complete the experimental fieldwork: Familiarty with the life cycle of the blacklegged tick and tick collection methods, including drag samples Ability to locate and secure access to appropriate experimental field plots Ability to apply tick control products using the following methods; high-pressure spraying of liquid formulation; backpack spraying of liquid formulation; and distribution of granular formulation Tick control products must already be on the market and approved for use in tick control by the Environmental Protection Agency Locate and secure access to a study area with the following characteristics: either residential properties (either along the woods/lawn edge or in wooded portions of the backyard) or woodlands representative of the wooded portions of local residential properties in an area with previously documented high peak abundance of nymphal Ixodes scapularis ticks and where other tick control strategies are not being implemented. Devise a study design with sufficient replication of treatment and control plots, and numbers of tick sampling occasions, for robust statistical evaluation of the impact of the required application variations on the density of host-seeking Ixodes scapularis ticks, based on a projected treatment effect size of 75%. Ensure inclusion in the contractor team of a licensed pest control operator with previous experience of application of tick control products via high-pressure equipment. Select and acquire the needed acaricide formulations. Select and stake study plots; and randomly assign the plots across the treatment and control categories included in the study design. Conduct pre- and post-acaricide application drag sampling for ticks in all study plots. Reporting requirements D.Submitting information to CDC Information may be submitted in the body of an e-mail or in document(s) attached to an e-mail. In the subject line of the email, You must put “Evaluation of fall and spring acaricide applications to suppress host-seeking Ixodes scapularis ticks”. CAPABILITY STATEMENTS MUST DEMONSTRATE THE MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS OUTLINED ABOVE. Please address each in order listed above. Telephone calls will not be accepted. Teaming Arrangements: All teaming arrangements shall include the above-cited information, certifications for each entity and who will be responsible for Core Requirements. Teaming arrangements are encouraged. Responses must be submitted not later than April 17, 2021 2PM EST. Capability statements must not exceed 10 pages, excluding attachments and no less than 10 font size. Documents will not be returned and will not be accepted after the due date. Please provide the follow Business information: 1. DUNS Number 2. Company Name 3. Company Address 4. Company Point of Contact, phone number and email address 5. Type of company under NAICS, as validated via the System for Award Management (SAM). Additional information on NAICS codes can be found at www.sba.gov. Any potential government contract must be registered in SAM located at http://www.sam.gov. 6. Corporate structure (corporation, LLC, sole proprietorship, partnership, limited liability partnership, professional corporation, etc.) 7. Current GSA Schedules appropriate to this Sources Sought, if held 8. Current Government Wide Agency Contracts (GWACs), if held 9. Point of Contact, phone number and email address of individuals who can verify demonstrated capabilities identified in the responses 10. Responders should also include a statement about whether or not they have an approved Federal audited accounting system. If the responder has an approved accounting system, please provide the certification in which the accounting system was deemed adequate (e.g. the name of the audit agency and audit number). You may submit as an attachment, which will not countinue on the next page. No phone calls or meetings will be accepted in response to this notice. F. Disclaimer This notice does not constitute a solicitation or a promise of a solicitation in the future. This notice is being provided for planning purposes only and does not commit the Government to any contractual agreements. No entitlement or payment of direct or indirect costs or charges will arise as a result of submission of responses to this notice. CDC will not accept proposals in response to this notice. No awards will be made in response to this notice. Responses to this notice are voluntary and will not affect any contractor's ability to submit a proposal if or when a formal solicitation is released. Proprietary information shall not be submitted in response to this notice. The Government shall not be liable for or suffer any consequential damages for any improperly identified proprietary information.