About | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline Law Journal Library | HeinOnline

B-266043 1 (1996-01-23)

handle is hein.gao/gaocrptadtx0001 and id is 1 raw text is: 






' ITW'


331122


Comptroller General
of the United States
Washington, D.C. 20548

Decision



Matter of: ABC HealthCare

File:        B-266043

Date:       January 23, 1996

Alan M. Grayson, Esq., for the protester.
Philip Kauffman, Esq., and Jeanne Anderson, Esq., Department of Veterans Affairs,
for the agency.
Jennifer D. Westfall-McGrail, Esq., and Christine S. Melody, Esq., Office of the
General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision.
DIGEST

Protest objecting to solicitation requirement for contractor accreditation by the
Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations as unduly restrictive
of competition is denied where agency demonstrates reasonable basis for the
requirement.
DECISION

ABC HealthCare protests the terms of invitation for bids (IFB) No. 590-05-96, issued
by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Center in Hampton, Virginia,
for home oxygen equipment. Specifically, ABC protests that the solicitation
requirement that the contractor be accredited by the Joint Commission on
Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) is not necessary to meet the
agency's minimum needs.

We deny the protest.

The IFB, which was issued on July 27, 1995, sought prices for the rental of oxygen
equipment, delivery service, and monthly visits to the homes of eligible VA
beneficiaries. The solicitation required that the contractor be accredited by the
JCAHO and that a copy of the accreditation be submitted to the contracting officer
prior to contract award.1





1To obtain JCAHO accreditation, a home care organization must demonstrate
substantial compliance with a number of standards, governing such matters as
personnel qualifications, staff training, and equipment management.

What Is HeinOnline?

HeinOnline is a subscription-based resource containing thousands of academic and legal journals from inception; complete coverage of government documents such as U.S. Statutes at Large, U.S. Code, Federal Register, Code of Federal Regulations, U.S. Reports, and much more. Documents are image-based, fully searchable PDFs with the authority of print combined with the accessibility of a user-friendly and powerful database. For more information, request a quote or trial for your organization below.



Contact us for annual subscription options:

Already a HeinOnline Subscriber?

profiles profiles most