Sources Sought Notice Heart Transplant Biopsies Consultation Services (Examination and Interpretation)-Light Microscopy, Immunofluorescence, and Electron Microscopy-Salt Lake City VA Health Care System-Base plus 4 Option Years Disclaimer: This Request for Information (RFI) is issued solely for market research information and planning purposes and does not constitute a solicitation. All information received in response to this RFI that is marked as proprietary will be handled accordingly. 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 RFI. Information Requested from Industry: In response to the Sources Sought, interested Contractors shall submit the following information and any Capabilities/Qualifications Statement to include but not limited to an overview of proposed solution(s) and a description of the product your company possesses in accordance with the Statement of Work draft / Salient Characteristics List. Responses to market research table questionnaire shall be submitted. If this information is not provided, then it will be assumed the entire requirement cannot be met. Description of Requirement: The Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration (VHA), Network Contracting Office 19 (NCO 19) is conducting a market survey and is seeking potential sources for a Heart Transplant Biopsies Consultation Services (Examination and Interpretation)-Light Microscopy, Immunofluorescence, and Electron Microscopy for VA Salt Lake City Health Care System (George E. Wahlen VA Medical Center). This Sources Sought Notice is issued for information and planning purposes only. This is not a solicitation or a request for proposal and shall not be construed as an obligation or commitment by the Government. An award will not be made on any offers submitted in response to this notice, and it shall not be implied that the Government is committed to providing any solicitation or award following this notice. The Government will not pay for any information received in response to this request, nor will the Government compensate a respondent for any costs incurred in developing the information provided. Requirement Item OR Services: Heart Transplant Biopsies Consultation Services (Examination and Interpretation)-Light Microscopy, Immunofluorescence, and Electron Microscopy-Salt Lake City VA Health Care System-Base plus 4 Option Years General Requirements The Contractor shall provide all labor, equipment, tools, materials, and other items necessary to deliver and install the equipment. Turnaround time for all consultations shall be as follows: Light Microscopy and Immunofluorescences slides shall be examined and interpreted on the day of receipt of slides. A verbal report given to the cardiac transplant coordinator, (801) 582-1565, ext. 4544, within 24 hours. The final report shall be sent via electronic transmission (i.e. fax) to (801) 584-1297 within 24 hours of receipt of specimen. Electron Microscopy thin sections shall be examined on day of receipt. The final report shall be sent via electronic transmission (i.e. fax) (801) 584-1297 within 24 hours of receipt of specimen. All slides shall be picked up by the Contractor at the George E. Wahlen, VA SLC HCS Pathology Service, building 14, room 1A05 during normal working hours, Monday through Friday, 0800-1630; after hours pick up, Monday through Friday, 1630-0800, building 25 room 1B19. The slides shall be retrieved via local courier within 2 hours during normal business hours. The VA Medical Center (VAMC) will process heart biopsy specimens and prepare stained slides for examination and interpretation. The services to be performed by the Contractor shall be performed in accordance with VA policies, procedures, and regulations of the VA facility. Contractor shall be required to attend transplant tumor boards for weekly meetings occurring at 07:00 MST. Required Salient Characteristics: Examination and interpretation of all patient slides on transplanted heart biopsies by light microscopy. Examination and interpretation of immunofluorescence slides stained with the following antibodies: HLA-DR, FITC-Mouse IgG, IgM, C3c, fibrin, C4d, C3d, albumin and/or other stains and controls deemed appropriate. Electron Microscopy examination of sections for selected patients that would include those at approximately one-month post-transplant as well as patients suspected of having Adriamycin cardio toxicity or recurrent amyloidosis Retrospective review of cases, on an as needed basis, to be determined by a SLCHCS Pathologist. Description Estimated Annual Quantity (Yearly) Unit Technical Consultation 25 Each Professional Consult with Immunofluorescence 25 Each Professional Consult with Electron Microscopy 30 Each Qualifications of Professional Medical Services Personnel The Contractor shall furnish a list of qualified providers to perform all professional medical services required herein. All professional providers of care under this contract shall: a. All licenses held by professional providers working on this contract shall be full and unrestricted licenses to practice medicine in one of the states or territories of the United States or the District of Columbia. Non physician medical professionals shall hold licenses or certifications as required in the state in which they practice. b. Contractor shall provide the following for all providers of care: Copy of state license Current malpractice insurance certification c. All providers and non physician professionals shall possess basic proficiency in spoken and written English in accordance with PL 95 201. d. The parties agree that personnel working for the Contractor shall not be considered employees of the VA SLC HCS for any purpose when performing services under this contract and shall be considered employees of the Contractor. In response to this announcement, please provide the information requested below requested in this market research table questionnaire. If this information is not provided, then it will be assumed the entire requirement cannot be met: NAICS Code: Company Name: Address: UEI (Unique Entity ID) Number: Contact Name: Phone No.: Email: Business Size Information - Select all that applies: Small Business Emerging Small Business Small Disadvantaged Business Certified under Section 8(a) of the Small Business Act HUBZone Woman Owned Certified Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Veteran Owned Small Business Large Business FSS/GSA Contract Holder: Yes No FSS/GSA Contract Number: Effective Date/ Expiration Date: Proposed solution is listed and available on the above FSS/GSA Contract: Yes No Available pricing structure of proposed solution (select all that are applicable below, or remove to fit your requirement): Pricing Model Please Indicate Availability Below: (Yes / No / NA) All on FSS Open Market only Mix of FSS & Open Market Fixed Monthly Charge Firm-Fixed Price Other: (Please explain) Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Market Rearch Questions: Buy American Act RFO 52.225-1 and RFO 52.225-2 Buy American Certificate What percentage of the proposed product (including leases and rentals) is a: Domestic end product? _____________ (%) Foreign end product? _______________ (%) Country of Origin: Questions for Small Businesses ONLY: Limitations on Subcontracting RFO 52.219-14 What percentage of the work would be subcontracted to another company? ________ What is the business size of the subcontractor?______ Per RFO 52.219-14 the following conditions must be met: Services (except construction), it will not pay more than 50 percent of the amount paid by the Government for contract performance to subcontractors that are not similarly situated entities. Any work that a similarly situated entity further subcontracts will count towards the prime contractor's 50 percent subcontract amount that cannot be exceeded. When a contract includes both services and supplies, the 50 percent limitation shall apply only to the service portion of the contract; Supplies (other than procurement from a nonmanufacturer of such supplies), it will not pay more than 50 percent of the amount paid by the Government for contract performance, excluding the cost of materials, to subcontractors that are not similarly situated entities. Any work that a similarly situated entity further subcontracts will count towards the prime contractor's 50 percent subcontract amount that cannot be exceeded. When a contract includes both supplies and services, the 50 percent limitation shall apply only to the supply portion of the contract; If subcontracting, what added value do you offer (RFO 52.215-23): Nonmanufacturer Rule (RFO 52.219-33): Does your company manufacturer these proposed items? [Â ] yes [Â ] no Does your company exceed 500 employees? [Â ] yes [Â ] no If yes, list # of employees: _________ Does your company primarily engaged in the retail or wholesale trade and normally sells the type of item being supplied? [Â ] yes [Â ] no Does your company take ownership or possession of the item(s) with its personnel, equipment or facilities in a manner consistent with industry practice? [Â ] yes [Â ] no Does your company supply the end item of a small business manufacturer, processor or producer made in the United States, or obtains a waiver of such requirement pursuant to paragraph (b)(5) CFR 121.406. [Â ] yes [Â ] no If yes, what is the manufacturer s name? ________________ Response Instructions: Do not provide more than 8 pages, including cover letter page. Submit your response via email to Ernest.Appiah@va.gov and NCO19Lab@va.gov Submit your response NLT 10:00AM (MST) on Friday, October 16th, 2026. Mark your response as Proprietary Information if the information is considered business sensitive. VA has identified the appropriate North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Code as 334516 Analytical Laboratory Instrument Manufacturing. Business Size Standard is 1,000 Employees. Please identify and explain any NAICS codes your company believes would better represent this Request for Information (RFI) request or Salient Characteristics List. (End of Sources Sought)
