REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
August 4, 2026
FROM
SHANNON D. DICUS, Sheriff/Coroner/Public Administrator
SUBJECT
Title
Amendment to Contract with National Medical Services, Inc., dba NMS Labs, to Provide Postmortem Forensic Toxicology Services
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Approve Amendment No. 2 to Contract No. 21-742 with National Medical Services, Inc., dba NMS Labs for the provision of postmortem forensic toxicology services, increasing the contract amount by $250,000, from $2,640,000 to a new total amount not to exceed $2,890,000, and extending the contract term by one month, for a new total contract period of October 1, 2021 through October 31, 2026.
(Presenter: Carolina Mendoza, Chief Deputy Director, 387-0640)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Operate in a Fiscally-Responsible and Business-Like Manner.
Provide for the Safety, Health and Social Service Needs of County Residents.
Pursue County Goals and Objectives by Working with Other Agencies and Stakeholders.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
Approval of this item will not result in the use of Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). The cost of postmortem forensic toxicology services in the amount of $250,000 has been included in the Sheriff/Coroner/Public Administrator’s (Department) 2026-27 budget (4430001000).
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The Department’s Coroner Division (Coroner) is responsible for investigating all deaths that occur within the County. This includes determining the cause of death and clarifying all circumstances surrounding or pertaining to the manner of death of a decedent. In conjunction with autopsy findings, the Coroner utilizes postmortem forensic toxicology services in approximately 95% of its estimated 2,500 autopsies per year, to formulate a medical conclusion as to a decedent’s cause of death.
On October 5, 2021 (Item No. 49), the Board of Supervisors (Board) approved Contract No. 21-742 with National Medical Service, Inc., dba NMS Labs, to provide postmortem forensic toxicology services in an amount not to exceed $1,200,000, for the period of October 1, 2021 through September 30, 2024, with the option to extend the term for two one-year periods or one two-year period. In the same action, the Board authorized the Sheriff/Coroner/Public Administrator to execute change orders to Contract No. 21-742, as needed, for an amount not to exceed $100,000 per change order, so long as the total aggregate amount of all change orders does not exceed 20% of the total contract amount and the change orders do not amend the contract term.
On June 3, 2022, Change Order No. 1 was approved in the amount of $100,000. On August 7, 2023, Change Order No. 2 was approved in the amount of $85,000. On March 27, 2024, Change Order No. 3 was approved in the amount of $55,000. The change orders were necessary to address increases in expenses due to a higher number of autopsies and the need to test for more complex drugs, such as Fentanyl and other synthetic drugs.
On June 11, 2024 (Item No. 90), the Board approved Amendment No. 1 to Contract No. 21-742, exercising the option to extend the term by two years, for a total contract period of October 1, 2021 through September 30, 2026, and increasing the contract amount by $1,340,000, which included the $240,000 from Change Order numbers 1, 2, and 3 for a new total amount not to exceed $2,540,000.
On May 25, 2026, Change Order No. 4 was approved in the amount of $100,000, for a new total contract amount of $2,640,000.
Approval of Amendment No. 2 will allow for the continuation of forensic toxicology services, increase the contract amount by $250,000, and extend the contract term through October 31, 2026. Although this one-month extension of the contract will cause the contract’s term to exceed five years, the extension is necessary to allow for the completion of the request for proposals (RFP) process. The RFP was released on July 1, 2026 and is expected to be completed by the end of October 2026.
PROCUREMENT
Not applicable.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by County Counsel (Grace B. Parsons, Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on June 30, 2026; Purchasing (Jason Cloninger, Lead Buyer III, 387-0321) on July 1, 2026; and County Finance and Administration (Erika Rodarte, Administrative Analyst, 387-4919) on July 14, 2026.