REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
October 8, 2024
FROM
ANDREW GOLDFRACH, ARMC Chief Executive Officer, Arrowhead Regional Medical Center
SUBJECT
Title
Agreement with Werfen USA LLC for the Purchase of Blood Bank Reagent Products and the Rental of Related Laboratory Testing Equipment
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Approve Agreement with Werfen USA LLC, including non-standard terms, for the purchase of blood bank reagent products and the rental of related laboratory testing equipment, in the not-to-exceed amount of $1,243,500, for the period of October 22, 2024, through five years from the acceptance date of the equipment.
(Presenter: Andrew Goldfrach, ARMC Chief Executive Officer, 580-6150)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Provide for the Safety, Health and Social Service Needs of County Residents.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Approval of this item will not result in the use of Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost), as the cost of $1,243,500 is funded by State Medi-Cal, Medicare, private insurances, and other departmental revenue. Funding sources may change in the future pending any legislative activity related to the repeal and/or replacement of the Affordable Care Act. Adequate appropriation and revenue have been included in the Arrowhead Regional Medical Center (ARMC) 2024-25 budget and will be included in future recommended budgets.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Approval of the Agreement to purchase reagent products and rent laboratory equipment (Agreement) from Werfen USA LLC (Werfen), will provide ARMC equipment for automated performance of patient blood type and antibody screening for determining blood product compatibility or transfusions and other testing of patient blood.
The reagent products and testing equipment is required for determining patient blood type and antibodies. Accurate identification plays a critical role in performing blood transfusions, preparing patients for surgeries, providing treatment for trauma, and in performing other procedures. These tests provide for the safety, health and social service needs of County residents by assisting clinicians in the diagnosis and treatment of ARMC patients.
The Agreement with Werfen is based on the standard County contract template, negotiated by both parties, with the following terms that deviate from the standard County terms:
1. The County may terminate the Agreement for convenience with 45 days written notice, subject to payment of the prorated value of the equipment for the remaining contract term, following the date of termination.
• County Policy 11-05 requires that the County have the right to terminate the contract, for any reason, with a 30-day written notice of termination without any obligation other than to pay amounts for services rendered and expenses reasonably incurred prior to the effective date of termination.
• Potential Impact: In the event the County terminates the Agreement without cause, the County will need to provide at least 45 days written notice and pay for the prorated value of the equipment, for the time from the date of termination through the original date of expiration of the Agreement. This could result in payment liability where no funds are available due to lack of allocation or loss of funding.
2. Payment terms are net 45 days from date of invoice.
• County standard payment terms are net 60 days with no interest or late payment penalties.
• Potential Impact: County standard processing time is 60 days or more. Failing to pay within 45 days of the date of invoice, may result in a material breach of the Agreement, which could allow Werfen to terminate the Agreement and seek other legal remedies.
ARMC recommends approval of this Agreement, including the non-standard terms, to enable ARMC to continue to perform essential blood testing for County residents receiving treatment at the hospital.
PROCUREMENT
The County Administrative Office approved and authorized the release of RFP No. ARMC124-ARMC-5260 (RFP) on February 1, 2024, to solicit proposals from interested and qualified vendors to provide blood bank reagent products and rental of testing equipment. The RFP was posted on the County’s Electronic Procurement Network.
Two proposals were received by the established deadline. Proposals from the two vendors listed below met the minimum requirements and continued through the evaluation process.
|
Agency |
Agency Address |
|
Werfen USA LLC |
180 Hartwell Road Bedford, MA 01730-2443 |
|
Ortho Clinical Diagnostics |
9975 Summers Ridge San Diego, CA 92121 |
The evaluation committee reviewed and evaluated the proposals based on the criteria released in the RFP. The criteria included: qualifications and experience, technical review, cost, references, and presentation.
Based on the evaluation criteria, the evaluation committee determined Werfen best met the needs of ARMC and is being recommended for award to provide blood bank reagent products, rental, and service of laboratory testing equipment. The vendor not recommended for contract award was notified by email and advised of the opportunity to submit a formal written protest based on the criteria in the RFP. No protest letter was received by the deadline.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by County Counsel (Charles Phan, Supervising Deputy County Counsel, 387- 5455) on September 6, 2024; Risk Management (Gregory Ustaszewski, Staff Analyst, 386-9008) on September 18, 2024; Purchasing (Veronica Pedace, Buyer III, 387-2464) on September 9, 2024: ARMC Finance (Chen Wu, Finance and Budget Officer, 580-3165) on September 13, 2024; Finance (Jenny Yang, Administrative Analyst, 387-4884) on September 18, 2024; and County Finance and Administration (Valerie Clay, Deputy Executive Officer, 387- 5423) on September 23, 2024.