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B-293088 1 (2004-01-23)

handle is hein.gao/gaocrptapjw0001 and id is 1 raw text is: G A 0 Comptroller General SIntegrity Reliability of the United States ~ccountabthty Inert Rea iy United States General Accounting Office DOCUMENT FOR PUBLIC RELEASE Washington, DC 20548 The decision issued on the date below was subject to a GAO Protective Order. This redacted version has been approved for public release. Decision Matter of: Apex Foot Health Industries File: B-293088 Date: January 23, 2004 John G. Horan, Esq., and Jason A. Carey, Esq., McDermott, Will & Emery, for the protester. Maura C. Brown, Esq., Department of Veterans Affairs, for the agency. Jacqueline Maeder, Esq., and John M. Melody, Esq., Office of the General Counsel, GAO, participated in the preparation of the decision. DIGEST Agency's decision to eliminate proposed diabetic socks from competition on basis that the seams on the socks were too prominent was based on medical judgments of evaluators with substantial expertise in the field; GAO will not question such medical judgments where there is no showing that product testing was unfairly administered. DECISION Apex Foot Health Industries protests the rejection of three different diabetic socks it proposed in response to request for proposals (RFP) No. 797-NC-03-0024, issued by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for diabetic socks.' VA evaluated the socks as medically unacceptable for diabetic patients. We deny the protest. The RFP, issued as a small business set-aside on July 3, 2003, contemplated the award of a fixed-price requirements contract for a base year, with four 1-year options, for quantities of diabetic socks. Offerors were required to submit product samples. The evaluation was to consist of an initial determination of whether the offered items met the minimum requirements and, for those found acceptable, an 1 The solicitation defined a diabetic sock as hosiery specifically designed to reduce pressure or friction to the foot. They should be devoid of large seams or creases that could impart clinically significant pressure to an insensitive foot and should be loose fitting proximally, as not to restrict circulation. RFP at 4.

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