Solicitation Number: W81K00-19-Q-0149

THIS IS A Sources Sought Notice ONLY. The United States Army Regional Health Contracting Office-Central - Fort Sam Houston (RHCO-C - FSH), Joint Base San Antonio, Texas, is contemplating a purchasing contract with Boston Scientific, 300 Boston Scientific Way Marlborough, MA, 01752-1291. The contemplated contract is anticipated for a Delivery Date of 23 April 2019.

The incumbent contractor manufactures the Watchman LAA Closure Device. The Watchman Closure Device is a one-time procedure for patients. The Watchman implant fits into the Left Atrial Appendage (LAA) to prevent blood clots from traveling to other parts of the body that prevent oxygen from reaching the brain, and causing strokes.
To assist the U.S. Government in determining whether or not vendors are able to provide this item or a Brand Name Equivalent, all interested businesses (large and small) are encouraged to respond to this sources sought synopsis.

This notice does not constitute a Request for Quote (RFQ), Invitation for Bid (IFB), Request for Proposal (RFP), or a promise to issue an RFQ, IFB or RFP in the future. This notice does not commit the U.S. Government to contract for any supply or service. Further, the U.S. Government is not seeking quotes, bids or proposals at this time and will not accept unsolicited proposals in response to this sources sought notice. The U.S. Government will not pay for any information or administrative costs incurred in response to this notice. Submittals will not be returned to the responder.

A determination not to compete this requirement, based upon responses to this notice, is solely within the discretion of the U.S. Government. However, if a competitive solicitation is released, it will be synopsized on the Government-wide Point of Entry (FedBizOpps). It is the responsibility of industry to monitor FedBizOpps for additional information pertaining to this requirement.

Interested sources should respond to the questions presented within this notice. The current contract is a combination business arrangement, comprised primarily of Firm Fixed Price and Contract Line Item Numbers (CLINs).
The contemplated North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code is 339113, Other Management Consulting Services, size standard 750 employees.

SUBMITTAL INFORMATION:
The Government will not review general capability statements. Ensure your submissions are tailored to this requirement and provide the information requested below. Submissions shall not exceed ten pages (including the cover page) and must be submitted in an Adobe Portable document Format (pdf) or Microsoft Word (doc or docx) format. In order to achieve a thorough understanding of your firm's capabilities, please provide a short but detailed explanation for each of the items below.

Cover Page
The cover page shall include the following information:
Respondent Name:
Mailing Address:
Point of Contact (POC): POC Title:
POC Phone:
POC E-Mail:
Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number: Contractor and Government Entity (CAGE)
code:
Certification of Active Registration in the System for Award Management at https://www.sam.gov/
Type of Business (Small or Large):

The U.S. Government has identified risks(acquisition/business related (schedule, cost) and operational execution related (performance, technical)) associated with executing a competitive procurement which meets the regulatory requirements of the Federal Acquisition Regulation FAR), Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS), Army Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (AFARS), policy requirements of the Army Contracting Command (ACC) and the Regional Health Contracting Officer-Central (RHCO-C) within less than two months. To assist the U.S. Government in mitigating these risks, industry is requested to provide a response to
the following request:

Describe your ability to provide the requested item or a Brand Name Equivalent, adhering to the Salient Characteristics listed below.

Respondents are encouraged to review the information requested carefully and ensure a complete, thorough response is submitted. Please note that respondents are responsible for adequately marking proprietary, restricted, or competition sensitive information contained in their response.

Describe your ability to provide the requested item or a Brand Name Equivalent.

Salient Characteristics:

Closure device must fit right into the Left Atrial Appendage (LAA)
Closure device must be designed to permanently seal off and keep blood clots from
escaping after implant
Closure device must be about the size of a quarter
The device must not be seen outside the body
Closure device must not require batteries or wires
Closure device must be implanted through a tube in the vessel of the leg
Closure device must be implanted into the heart in a one-time procedure
Closure device procedure must be performed in the Electrophysiology (EP) lab
Closure device must remain stable lifelong

Responses or inquiries about this sources sought notice shall be submitted electronically no later than 12 am, Central Standard Time, Monday, 22 April 2018 via e-mail and shall be clearly marked with Request for Proposal (RFP) number W81K00-19-Q-0149, identified within this announcement and e-mailed to the following points of Kathy Clayton, Contract Specialist at: [email protected].

Note: If you believe that this action is unreasonably restricting competition contact the Regional Health Contracting Office-Central (RHCO-C) Special Advocate for Competition, Mr. Scott Earle, at [email protected] or 210-221-3027. Include the subject of the acquisition, this announcement, and the RHCO-C point of contact information from the Sources Sought Synopsis.

Identify any condition or action that may be having the effect of unnecessarily restricting competition with respect to this acquisition and identify alternatives or solutions.

Provide the specific aspects that unreasonably restrict competition and the rationale for such conclusion.