Solicitation
Electro-Therapeutic Modalities for Pain Management (ETMPM) - Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS) Procurement Program
Department of Veterans Affairs
AI summaryThe Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) wants firm-fixed-price (FFP: one set price per item) indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ: orders placed as needed) contracts for pain-relief devices and accessories. Items include transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) units, interferential current, short-wave diathermy and headache neuromodulation devices for VA facilities nationwide, replacing an expiring legacy TENS contract. Award goes tier by tier: service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses (SDVOSBs) first, then veteran-owned small businesses (VOSBs), other small businesses and large businesses. The response due date is October 30, 2026, 3:00 PM CDT (an amendment moved it to Nov 2, 2026, 12:00 PM CST · 1:00 PM Eastern), when proposals and one sample of every offered product are due. More in the summary
AI summary Beta
Summary of the version posted Oct 16, 2026. The notice was amended Oct 26, 2026. The due date moved from Oct 30, 2026 to Nov 2, 2026. Check what else changed on SAM.gov. This summary may miss requirements: 1 of 13 attachments weren't read (S02_Attachment 0001_RFP 36C79126R0011_Price Marix_Fillable.xlsx). Check the attachments on SAM.gov.
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) wants firm-fixed-price (FFP: one set price per item) indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ: orders placed as needed) contracts for pain-relief devices and accessories. Items include transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) units, interferential current, short-wave diathermy and headache neuromodulation devices for VA facilities nationwide, replacing an expiring legacy TENS contract. Award goes tier by tier: service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses (SDVOSBs) first, then veteran-owned small businesses (VOSBs), other small businesses and large businesses. The response due date is October 30, 2026, 3:00 PM CDT, when proposals and one sample of every offered product are due.
Who can bid (5)
- To compete in Tier 1, be a verified service-disabled veteran-owned small business (SDVOSB); Tier 2 is for verified veteran-owned small businesses (VOSBs), Tier 3 for other small businesses under NAICS code 334510 (the industry code; size standard 1,250 employees), and Tier 4 for large businesses. There is no set-aside you must hold to send an offer.
- Have valid FDA 510(k) clearance or other FDA authorization for every device and accessory offered
- Non-manufacturers must hold a current OEM-issued Authorized Distributor Letter for each product they offer
Show all 5Show fewer
- Offer products that meet Trade Agreements Act (TAA) country-of-origin rules and certify it
- Be able to deliver ordered products within 30 calendar days of order receipt
How to submit: Email to John Overstake (john.overstake@va.gov), with copies to Susanna Huffmaster (susanna.huffmaster@va.gov) and Maurice Walker (maurice.walker@va.gov); product samples are shipped to the Denver Logistics Service in Golden, Colorado, due October 30, 2026, 3:00 PM CDT. What to include is under Full summary below. Check the solicitation's instructions on SAM.gov.
Things to watch (9)
- Serious: Award is tier by tier, with SDVOSBs first. All tiers send offers at once, but evaluation goes in order. A large business or an other small business can win only if no award can be made at a higher tier.
- Serious: Product sample for every item, due with the proposal. Every product offered needs a sample received in Golden, Colorado by the response due date, at the offeror's cost. Missing samples can leave a line out of the award.
- Serious: Country-of-origin certificate rules changed in Amendment 0005. Amendment 0005 adds back the Buy American certificate (Attachment 0004) for small businesses and keeps the Trade Agreements certificate (Attachment 0005) for large businesses. Earlier answers told every offeror to send Attachment 0005. Firms that already submitted must resubmit.
Show all 9Show fewer
- Serious: Many required documents; omissions make the proposal non-responsive. The package needs the signed form, Technical Capability Statement, FDA letters, distributor letters, three past performance documents, price matrix and certificates, each as a separate attachment.
- Worth checking: Limitations on Subcontracting certificate required. Amendment 0001 removed this certificate, but Amendment 0003 retained it as a material requirement. Resellers must certify under the nonmanufacturer rule (SBA rule for resellers of other firms' products).
- Worth checking: A device line and its accessory line must be offered together. A proposal on line item X005 (a contract line item number, CLIN: one priced line of the order) must include its accessory sub-line X005AA (SLIN), and one offeror gets both. A bidder who can't supply both can't win that line.
- Worth checking: 30-day delivery after each order. Ordered products must reach the Golden, Colorado facility within 30 calendar days of a purchase order. Supply chain and shipping plans are judged in the Technical Capability Statement.
- Worth checking: Past performance: three documents needed. A firm with no past performance must say so with proof, and the Source Selection Authority (SSA: the official who picks the winner) may not agree. If agreed, the rating is Neutral Confidence.
- Minor: Questions were due Oct 5, 2026. Check the amendments for the agency's answers.
Read from the notice and 12 attachments. 1 of 13 not read. Show which files.
- S06_Solicitation Number 36C79126R0011_Amendment Number 0005_ETMPM-TENS Requirement_Conformed Copy_Issued_Dated 16OCT2026.pdf (read)
- S06_Solicitation Number 36C79126R0011_Amendment Number 0004_ETMPM-TENS Requirement_Conformed Copy_Issued_Dated 15OCT2026.pdf (read)
- S05_All Offerors Questions and All Government Responses_Solicitation Number 36C79126R0011_Final_Dated 09OCT2026.pdf (read)
- S06_Solicitation Number 36C79126R0011_Amendment Number 0003_ETMPM-TENS Requirement_Combined Document_Issued 06OCT2026_Fillable.pdf (read)
- S05_All Offerors Questions and All Government Responses_Solicitation Number 36C79126R0011_Posted To GPE Date 02OCT2026.pdf (read)
- S06_Solicitation Number 36C79126R0011_Amendment Number 0002_Combined Document_ETMPM-TENS Requirement_Issued 02OCT2026.pdf (read)
- S02_RFP Number 36C79126R0011_Amendment 0001_ETMPM-TENS Requirement_Issued 30SEP2026_Fillable.pdf (read)
- S02_RFP Number 36C79126R0011_ETMPM-TENS Requirement_Fillable.pdf (read)
- S02_Attachment 0004_RFP 36C79126R0011_FAR Provision 52.225-2_Buy American Certificate_Fillable.docx (read)
- S02_Attachment 0003_RFP 36C79126R0011_VAAR Clause 852.219-76_Limitations on Subcontracting_Fillable.docx (read)
- S02_Attachment 0005_RFP 36C79126R0011_FAR Provision 52.225-6_Trade Agreements Certificate_Fillable.docx (read)
- S02_Attachment 0006_RFP 36C79126R0011_Offeror Past Performance Questionnaire_Fillable.docx (read)
- S02_Attachment 0001_RFP 36C79126R0011_Price Marix_Fillable.xlsx: not read (the AI doesn't read this file type yet): open it on SAM.gov
Full summary
What they want
- Supply FDA-cleared (Food and Drug Administration) devices, each a CLIN, and their accessories, each a SLIN, such as electrodes, lead wires, chargers and garment applicators
- Meet the universal minimum technical requirements (MTRs) and the MTRs for each CLIN and SLIN you offer
- Deliver ordered products to the VA's Denver Logistics Service (DLS) facility in Golden, Colorado within 30 calendar days after receiving an order
- Each SLIN is priced and shipped per Each (EA, the unit of issue): one package of four electrodes; each CLIN device is one device
- Offer a CLIN and its accessory SLINs together, since parent devices must work with the accessories (X005 must include X005AA)
- Take orders and invoice electronically (electronic data interchange and e-invoicing), and follow the commercial warranty and annual product technical refresh terms listed in the table of contents
- Awards are made on each CLIN and SLIN, and the VA may award some lines and not others
- Contract type
- Firm-fixed-price (FFP) indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ): a base IDIQ contract for each awarded CLIN, then a funded FFP delivery order for the Base Year
- Period of performance
- A Base Year delivery order follows each base IDIQ award; the total term and any option years are in Section B.3.3, which wasn't in the text read
- Place of performance
- Golden, CO, USA per SAM.gov; ordered products go to the VA's Denver Logistics Service (DLS) facility
- Estimated value
- Not stated
- How they'll choose
- Per line item: CLINs and SLINs X001-X004 use lowest price technically acceptable (LPTA: lowest price among acceptable offers wins). CLIN X005 and SLIN X005AA use best value tradeoff. Each CLIN is awarded at the highest tier where an award is possible.
- Offers due
- October 30, 2026, 3:00 PM CDT (from the version posted Oct 16, 2026; amended since)
- How to submit
- Email to John Overstake (john.overstake@va.gov), with copies to Susanna Huffmaster (susanna.huffmaster@va.gov) and Maurice Walker (maurice.walker@va.gov); product samples are shipped to the Denver Logistics Service in Golden, Colorado
What they'll judge offers on
- Technical: the Technical Capability Statement, universal and line-specific minimum technical requirements, product samples, FDA clearance, and end-product country of origin certification
- Past performance: three official contractor performance reports (CPARS) or past performance questionnaires; a firm with none can get a Neutral Confidence rating
- Price: unit prices in the Attachment 0001 price matrix; price is the deciding factor for X001-X004
What to include when you submit
- Email subject line: Proposal Submission - RFP 36C79126R0011 - [Offeror Name]
- Send the signed Standard Form 1449 (SF 1449: the form you sign and return as your offer) as a separate attachment, with Blocks 30a-30c done and the yellow Section B continuation page fields filled in
- Send a Technical Capability Statement as a separate attachment showing you meet every universal and line-specific requirement and can deliver within 30 calendar days of order receipt
- Send OEM-issued Authorized Distributor Letters (from the original maker) for every non-manufacturer product, per CLIN and SLIN, as a separate attachment
- Send valid FDA 510(k) clearance letters or other FDA authorization for every device and accessory, per CLIN and SLIN, as a separate attachment
- Past performance: send the three most recent official CPARS evaluation reports (Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System). If you lack them, use past performance questionnaires (PPQs) from your three most recent customers, sent by those customers directly to john.overstake@va.gov with a copy to maurice.walker@va.gov.
- Any mix of CPARS reports and PPQs is fine if it totals three documents; a firm without enough must say so in its Technical Capability Statement with supporting reasons
- Ship one product sample for every product offered, per CLIN and SLIN, at no cost to the Government, to Department of Veterans Affairs Denver Logistics Service, 555 Corporate Circle, Golden, CO 80401-5621, Attention: Javier Ramirez and Lisa Mello, RFP 36C79126R0011
- Send Attachment 0001 Price Matrix and a separate Attachment 0001 file for each alternate electrode (AD) option; AD SLINs must also be in the primary matrix
- Send Attachment 0003, the Limitations on Subcontracting certificate (VAAR 852.219-76), completed, signed and dated
- Tiers 1 to 3 (small businesses under NAICS 334510): send Attachment 0004, the FAR 52.225-2 Buy American Certificate. Tier 4 (other-than-small businesses): send Attachment 0005, the FAR 52.225-6 Trade Agreements Certificate.
- If you already sent a proposal, resubmit Attachment 0004 by email by the response due date
- Propose on every CLIN and SLIN you want considered, with unit prices and samples for each
- Submit Attachment 0006 only if you use past performance questionnaires
Current contractor
This is a recompetition of the expiring legacy TENS contract, whose expiration date the notice gives as January 19, 2027. No incumbent is named. The new contracts add interferential current, short-wave diathermy and headache neuromodulation devices.
Not in the notice text
- Most of the solicitation was attached but not read in full: the middle of each solicitation PDF was left out, so Sections B to E (CLIN and SLIN list, quantities, minimum technical requirements, ordering and delivery terms) and the Attachment 0001 price matrix spreadsheet were not read; see them on SAM.gov
- Quantities and units of issue for each CLIN and SLIN beyond Each (EA) are not in the text read
- The contract term, any option years, and the guaranteed minimum order value are in Section B.3.3 and B.3.5, which were not read
- Which device type each CLIN covers and each line's minimum technical requirements are not in the text read
- Page limits for the Technical Capability Statement are not in the text read
- The estimated total value of the program is not stated
Eligibility and how to respond
- No set-aside, but the notice names requirements you must meet before you can bid:
- Tiered evaluation: offers from service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses (SDVOSBs) are looked at first, then veteran-owned ones, then other small businesses. Check the tiers in the notice.
- How to submit, from the AI summary: Email to John Overstake (john.overstake@va.gov), with copies to Susanna Huffmaster (susanna.huffmaster@va.gov) and Maurice Walker (maurice.walker@va.gov); product samples are shipped to the Denver Logistics Service in Golden, Colorado. Check it in the notice before you send anything.
Notice details
- Posted
- Oct 26, 2026
- Notice type
- Solicitation
- Office
- Commodities & Services Acquisition Service (36C791), Denver, CO
- Product/service code
- 6515 · Medical and Surgical Instruments, Equipment, and Supplies
- Business type
- Medical & healthcare (FedReady's grouping, from NAICS 334510)
- Versions
15 versions have been posted, newest first.
- Oct 26, 2026 · Amendment 0001 (this version)Due Nov 2, 2026 (changed)
- Oct 16, 2026 · AmendmentDue Oct 30, 2026
- Oct 15, 2026 · AmendmentDue Oct 30, 2026 (changed)
- Oct 9, 2026 · AmendmentDue Oct 19, 2026
- Oct 6, 2026 · AmendmentDue Oct 19, 2026
- Oct 2, 2026 · AmendmentDue Oct 19, 2026
- Sep 30, 2026 · AmendmentDue Oct 19, 2026
- Sep 29, 2026 · AmendmentDue Oct 19, 2026
- Sep 28, 2026 · AmendmentDue Oct 19, 2026
- Sep 28, 2026 · AmendmentDue Oct 19, 2026
- Sep 22, 2026 · AmendmentDue Oct 19, 2026
- Sep 21, 2026 · AmendmentDue Oct 19, 2026
- Sep 19, 2026 · AmendmentDue Oct 19, 2026
- Sep 18, 2026 · AmendmentDue Oct 19, 2026
- Sep 18, 2026 · SolicitationDue Oct 19, 2026
- Attachments
Past awards and competition
Who has won work like this before, the likely incumbent, and what similar contracts paid, from USAspending.gov.
Before you respond
- How to respond to a solicitation (8 steps)
- How to read a government solicitation
- How to price a government contract
Terms on this notice: Solicitation
Full notice text from SAM.gov
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