The Minneapolis VA Health Care System is conducting market research in accordance with FAR 17.207 Exercise of Options for Pharmacy First Fill Services as described in the Statement of Work below. This is a SOURCES SOUGHT NOTICE only looking for businesses to provide the services listed in the Statement of Work below for market research purposes. No proposals are being requested or accepted with this notice. THIS IS NOT A SOLICITATION FOR PROPOSALS OR PRICING AND NO CONTRACT SHALL BE AWARDED FROM THIS NOTICE. This notice shall not be construed as a solicitation or as an obligation on the part of the Department of Veterans Affairs. Responses to this notice will be treated only as information for the Government to consider as part of their market research efforts. The information provided will be used by the Government in developing its acquisition strategy regarding possible set aside for Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned, Veteran-Owned, and other socio-economic categories of small business. Interested parties are responsible for adequately marking proprietary, restricted or competition sensitive information contained in their response. The Government does not intend to pay for the information submitted in response to this notice and parties responding will not be entitled to payment for direct or indirect costs incurred in responding to this notice. The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code for this requirement is 524292, Pharmacy Benefit Management and Other Third-Party Administration of Insurance and Pension Funds, with an SBA Small Business Size Standard of $45.5 Million. If you are a vendor capable of providing the requested information and required services described below with competitive pricing, send your information with a description of proof of capability and answers to all questions to:
[email protected] on or before Monday, December 29, 2025 at 10:00 AM Central Time. Please provide answers as appropriate to the following questions in the table below with your response to this Sources Sought. Failure to respond accurately to the following questions may affect the acquisition strategy. Failure to respond to the questions at all, or not respond to select individual questions, will result in your response being determined as non-responsive. 1. Please provide all socio-economic categories of your firm (e.g., SDVOSB, VOSB, WOSB, Large Business, 8a, etc.) as well as your firm s SAM Unique Entity ID number (replaces DUNS number) and Government Contract POC. 2. State whether the requested services may be ordered against a government contract awarded to your organization (e.g Federal Supply Schedule (FSS), General Services Administration (GSA), etc.). 3. State if subcontracting is contemplated for this requirement and what percentage of the work will be subcontracted and for what tasks. 4. Provide estimated lead time to deliver a fully functioning solution as described in the Statement of Work below. 5. Complete the ITEM INFORMATION directly below this section for market research pricing for the services described in the Statement of Work. Rate Table: Generic Prescriptions (Approximately 96% of procurements) AWP Markup/Markdown percentage (+/-) and Additional Fee(s) EST. QUANTITY UNIT VARIANCE TO AWP 6363 EACH -70% Brand Name Prescriptions (Approximately 4% of procurements) AWP Markup/Markdown percentage (+/-) and Additional Fee(s) EST. QUANTITY UNIT VARIANCE TO AWP 243 EACH -17.1% ITEM INFORMATION ITEM NUMBER DESCRIPTION OF SUPPLIES/SERVICES QUANTITY UNIT UNIT PRICE AMOUNT 0001 1.00 YR $___________ $___________ Fill and dispense original prescriptions that are written by Veteran Affairs (VA) approved prescribers assigned to the Veteran Affairs Community Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) or the Veteran Affairs Community Resource and Referral Center (CRRC) in accordance with the Statement of Work. Contract Period: Base POP Begin: 04-01-2026 POP End: 03-31-2027 PRINCIPAL NAICS CODE: 524292 - Pharmacy Benefit Management and Other Third Party Administration of Insurance and Pension Funds PRODUCT/SERVICE CODE: Q517 - Medical - Pharmacology *If applicable, VAAR 852.219-75 VA Notice of Limitations on Subcontracting Certificate of Compliance for Services and Construction, will apply to the potential solicitation if set-aside for Veteran Owned Small-Businesses or Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small-Businesses.* *If applicable, FAR 52.219-14 Limitations on Subcontracting, will apply to the potential solicitation if set-aside for Small-Businesses.* DISCLAIMER This Sources Sought is issued solely for information and planning purposes only and does not constitute a solicitation. All information received in response to this Sources Sought that is marked as proprietary will be handled accordingly. In accordance with FAR 15.201(e), responses to this notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. Responders are solely responsible for all expenses associated with responding to this Sources Sought. The deadline for this information is 10:00 AM Central Time on Monday, December 29, 2025. PRELIMINARY PERFORMANCE WORK STATEMENT Description/Specifications: The contractor s pharmacy (or pharmacies as applicable) will fill and dispense original prescriptions that are written by Veteran Affairs (VA) approved prescribers assigned to the Veteran Affairs Community Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) or the Veteran Affairs Community Resource and Referral Center (CRRC). The contractor must have one or more pharmacies within 5 miles, (or the nearest pharmacy if one is not available within 5 miles) for each of the following locations: Chippewa Falls CBOC 8:00am-4:30pm M-F excluding holidays 2503 County Highway I Chippewa Falls, WI 54729 Hayward CBOC 7:45-4:30pm Monday, Tuesday and Thursday excluding holidays 15954 River s Edge Drive Hayward, WI 54843 Rice Lake CBOC 8:00am-4:30pm M-F excluding holidays 2700A college Drive Rice Lake, WI 54868 Iron Range (Hibbing) CBOC 7:30am-4:30pm M-F excluding holidays 990 West 41st St, Suite 5 Hibbing, MN 55746 Ely CBOC 8:00am to 4:30pm Tuesday and Thursday excluding holidays 720 Miners Drive East Ely, MN 55731 Mankato CBOC 1961 Premier Drive, Suite 330 Mankato, MN 56001 St James CBOC 8:00am -4:30pm Monday, Thursday, Friday excluding Federal holidays 1212 Heckman Court St James, MN 56081 Rochester CBOC 8:00am-4:30pm M-F excluding Federal holidays 3900 55th Street W Rochester, MN 55091 Maplewood CBOC 7:00am-4:30pm M-F excluding Federal holidays 1725 Legacy Parkway, Suite 100 Maplewood, MN 55109 Ramsey CBOC 7:30am-4:30pm M-F excluding Federal holidays 7545 Veterans Drive Ramsey, MN 55303 Community Resource and Referral Center, CRRC 1201 Harmon Place, Suite 103 Minneapolis, MN 55403 Twin Ports CBOC 8:00am-4:30pm M-F excluding holidays 3520 Tower Avenue Superior, WI 54880 Southwest Metro (Shakopee) CBOC 1111 Shakopee Town Square Shakopee, MN 55379 South Central Border (Albert Lea) CBOC 1665 W. Main Street Albert Lea, MN 56007 The CBOC/CRRC operating hours are normally 08:00 AM to 04:30 PM, Monday-Friday, excluding federal holidays. Prescriptions filled will be in written form provided by the CBOC or CRRC VA Physician(s). Dispensing pharmacies must be able to accept the written prescription on VA Form 10-2577F, printed form from the EHR (Electronic Health Record), or a VA fax prescription. VA uses the VA Form 10-2577F for Schedule II drugs. Should the state in which the dispensing pharmacy operates require other than VA Form 10-2577F, Security Prescription Form, it will be the contractor s responsibility to provide the VA Medical Center, Chief of Pharmacy, or designee, with the regulation or requirement, ordering addresses, and ordering information needed to provide the VA approved provider with the proper security form. The contractor and contracting pharmacy will not require the patient to provide more information than their name, the last four of the social security number, and date of birth. THERE IS NO JUSTIFICATION BY THE CONTRACTOR OR CONTRACTING PHARMACY TO REQUIRE THE PATIENT TO GIVE THE FULL SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER. Prescriptions will only be filled by a VA approved provider and will be limited to those drugs on the VHA formulary, legend drugs, or otherwise authorized by the Minneapolis VAHCS. Prescriptions will be filled and limited to a maximum of ten (10) days. An antibiotic may be filled for up to a fourteen (14) day course of therapy. No refills will be authorized. The contractor shall fill NEW PRESCRIPTIONS ONLY. Reimbursement shall be determined by the Average Wholesale Price (AWP), discounted by the applicable percentage, plus the applicable dispensing fee. THE TOTAL PRICE CHARGED TO THE VA SHALL NOT EXCEED THAT CHARGED TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC AND SHALL NOT EXCEED THE PRICE CHARGED BY THE CONTRACTOR S LOWEST THIRD-PARTY REIMBURSEMENT PLAN. Prescriptions shall be filled with generic drugs to the extent permitted by law and the least expensive drug product the pharmacy has in stock will be dispensed. Generic drugs shall be dispensed, if in the professional judgment of the pharmacist, the substitute product is available, safe, effective, and to the greatest extent possible contains the same chemical ingredients of the same strength, quantity, and dosage of the brand name. All generic products used must be in compliance with Federal and State requirements. Brand name drugs will only be reimbursed IF NO GENERIC FORM OF THE DRUG EXISTS IN THE MARKETPLACE. VA beneficiaries or their representative will pick up their own prescriptions at the dispensing pharmacy. No prescriptions are to be mailed. No prescriptions are to be delivered. The VA shall randomly audit all prescription fills. The Department of Veterans Affairs shall have free access during regular business hours, and a 24-hour advance notice for non-business hours, to such books, records, invoices, and prescription files as deemed necessary to verify claim information, prescription volume, and the usual and customary charges to the general public for covered prescriptions. The contractor shall make all prescription records and invoices available at the time of the audit. ** Contractor shall develop a document which provides contractor pharmacies and veterans with instructions regarding prescription fulfillment and billing. the following information must be included: Contract pharmacies shall obtain confirmation of prescriptions filled for VA beneficiaries by having the patient sign for each prescription received. Signature records shall be retained and readily accessible for random VA audit. All prescription must have proper auxiliary labels attached and pharmacist counseling and medication information sheets provided. The contractor and all pharmacies shall keep all information concerning VA beneficiaries confidential and shall not release or disclose information to any person, except as authorized in writing and according to all applicable laws. The Privacy Act of 1974, Public Law 93-579, December 31, 1974, (5 U.S.C. 552a) applies to this procurement. Pharmacies authorized to fill prescriptions under the contractor s plan must agree to the following conditions: Pharmacists will review allergy history with patients prior to filling prescriptions. All information concerning VA beneficiaries shall be kept confidential and shall not be disclosed to any person, except as authorized in writing and according to all applicable laws. Representatives of the VA are authorized to visit the contractor s site and the premises of any pharmacy filling VA prescriptions during regular business hours for the purposes of auditing and evaluating, which may include the inspection of clinical records. The contractor shall report all adverse drug events reported by VA beneficiaries to the Minneapolis VAHCS, Chief of Pharmacy Services or designee, and to the approved prescribing provider. Services provided to VA beneficiaries under this contract shall meet all applicable Federal and State regulations. The contractor shall maintain a list of approved providers and update the list as it changes based on information from the COR. Updates to the list shall be completed within 3 business of receipt of new information. The list shall include all existing and/or new VA approved providers state license number, DEA number and NPI number. The contractor shall immediately notify its contract pharmacies of the physician information so as to avoid delay in patient services. Notification of physician information may occur on the day the VA physician provides services at a CBOC/CRRC location, or prior as time allows. The Government reserves the right to fill any prescription covered under this contract through the use of its own resources and/or staff. RECALLED AND DEFECTIVE PRODUCTS: The Contractor will immediately notify the Contracting Officer of any recalls of product or other important product safety issues. As appropriate, the Contractor will replace and/or reimburse recalled/defective products at no cost to the Government. The contractor may be liable for costs of processing recalls, i.e. administrative and clinical services to replace recalled/defective products. DELIVERABLES: Monthly Reports: Claims report Invoice report Monthly Contract Activity Summary Report: Retail and mail utilization Top 25 drug Brand/Generic drugs filled Drug utilization analysis Top 25 therapeutic drug classes Key performance indicators All reports are due within first 15 days of each month.