PSC Calls for More Time and Information on CIO-SP4

Arlington, Va. (June 29, 2021) The Professional Services Council (PSC) urged the National Institutes of Health Information Technology Acquisition and Assessment Center (NITAAC) within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to extend the proposal due date and provide industry with more complete information regarding the Governmentwide Acquisition Contract vehicle Chief Information Officer-Solutions and Partners 4 (CIO-SP4). 

In a June 28, 2021, letter to NITAAC leadership, PSC also requested NITAAC review several decisions reflected in the final Request for Proposals (RFP) as amended with consideration to applicable laws and regulations and to share promptly the rationale for those decisions with industry through procurement documentation.

“There are several unanswered questions regarding evaluation and submission requirements, and elements of the RFP amendments require more time for contractors to coordinate proposals that respond completely to the new or changed requirements,” said Stephanie Kostro, PSC’s Executive Vice President for Policy. “We’re calling on NITAAC to consider an extension until Friday, July 30, 2021, to give offerors adequate time to submit their proposal solutions and to establish a more reasonable timeline for successful acquisition outcomes.” 

Despite opportunities for NITAAC to incorporate industry feedback and socialize requirements among industry partners, potential offerors found many surprises in the May 25, 2021, final CIO-SP4 RFP. In the month since that release, numerous amendments and answers to questions containing imprecise and at times inconsistent language have only contributed to further confusion among interested offerors. Despite these significant changes, NITAAC allowed for only a 10-day extension for responses, which are now due July 8, 2021.

“This is a large-scale and important contract vehicle for government agencies with notable healthcare information technology needs. As we continue to respond to and recover from the COVID-19 pandemic and as the future of healthcare evolves, it’s imperative for NITAAC to create and sustain a diverse, competitive marketplace wherein each offer receives fair, careful, and adequate evaluation and offerors win on the merits of their solutions,” continued Kostro. “We look forward to working with NITAAC to continue to provide feedback in advance of the May 2022 expiration date of the current CIO-SP3 contract vehicle.” 

For a PDF of this release, click here. 

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Media Contact: 
Pheniece Jones 
Director, Media Relations 
703.875.8974 
media@pscouncil.org