OA&L - OA - NAC - FSSS - Schedule 65 I B

National Acquisition Center - Federal Supply Schedule Service
Pharmaceuticals - FSC 65, Part I, Section B
Drugs, Pharmaceuticals & Hematology Related Products

AS7002 DIRECT-TO PATIENT DISTRIBUTION PROGRAM PARTICIPATION (JAN 2007) - The Department of Veterans Affairs, National Acquisition Center’s Direct-to-Patient Distribution Program is utilized by all VA Consolidated Mail Outpatient Pharmacies (CMOP) facilities. This program utilizes a commercial vendor to deliver medical surgical (med/surg) items and dietary supplements directly to VA patients.

AS1335 THERAPEUTIC EQUIVALENCE (FEB 2007) - Only products that have received therapeutic equivalence code of “A” by the Food and Drug Administration will be considered, unless all drugs in the family group are “B” rated. In that case, no award will be made other than to the innovator unless the non-innovator vendor submits acceptable data demonstrating bioequivalence.

AS508 BAR CODING (NOV 2006) - All pharmaceutical products provided under this contract shall include bar code labeling at the unit-of-use package level. The bar code labeling must be in a linear format that conforms to all EAN.UCC System or Health Industry Business Communication Council (HIBCC) standards.

Contract Administration Forms (All SINs under 65IB Schedule EXCEPT for 42-2A)

Please note that all requests for modification must be completed in its entirety and submitted using the applicable modification request form and associated spreadsheet as provided below.

The Direct-To-Patient (DTP) Distribution program consists of two requirements contracts awarded in support of VA’s Consolidated Mail Outpatient Pharmacy (CMOP) program. These contracts were awarded after competition, and are mandatory for use by the CMOP program. The concept of the contract is rather simple: the contractor receives automated transmissions of prescriptions, “pulls” the prescribed product(s) from their existing stock, and dispenses the product(s) direct to the veteran patient.

The devil is in the detail. The prescriptions being passed not only include the normal information which would be in a prescription, they also include exact identification of the product to be dispensed. This identification includes identification of a contract and contractor, along with identifying the product by contractor’s catalog number and price, which is established as the mandatory source for the DTP contractor to obtain the product prior to dispensing.

Advance agreements must be made between each DTP contractor and VA’s mandatory sources. These agreements rely on the FSS contractor being willing to work with the DTP contractor for provision of the product to be dispensed. It is also essential to note the DTP contractor will be paid no greater than the VA’s contract price for the product.

As stated, there are two DTP awards. One award is to a division of McKesson, and is strictly for dispensing dietary supplements and related products. The other contract is awarded to Medline, for dispensing Medical/Surgical (MedSurg) and over-the-counter (OTC) products. Both contractors receive a fixed per-prescription handling fee, and payment at the VA’s price for the product it dispensed. The DTP contractors are not paid in advance; they are paid when prescriptions are dispensed. Shipping costs are borne directly by the CMOP program, via pre-established accounts.