Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Commercial Air Patient Transport

Updated Oct 20, 2026

Justification from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Official notice and attachments

Description

FSS Sole Source Justification Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Veterans Transportation Program (VTP) Page 10 of 10 DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS Office of Acquisition, Logistics, and Construction Office of Procurement, Enterprise Procurement Office (EPO) 5202 Presidents Ct, Suite 103 Frederick, MD 21703 Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) Sole Source Justification (Prepared in accordance with RFO 8.401, GSAR 538.7104-3(b)(2) and format guidance provided within the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Companion, FC 8.401(b)) Identification of the agency and the contracting activity, and specific identification of the document as an "FSS Sole Source Justification."

This Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) Sole Source Justification supports an FSS Task Order to be executed by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Enterprise Procurement Office (EPO), on behalf of the Veterans Transportation Program (VTP) within the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). Nature and/or description of the action, including a description of the supplies or services required to meet the agency s needs and the estimated value.

VA proposes to award a non-competitive FSS task order to Duluth Travel Inc. (Duluth) to provide commercial air travel booking services for Beneficiary Travel. This program arranges air transportation for eligible Veterans who must travel outside their normal commuting area to receive authorized medical care. Supporting Beneficiary Travel, the contractor will provide: Reserving, booking, and ticketing of refundable airfare; Coordination of specialized airline accommodations (wheelchair assistance, etc.); VHA-compliant processing, documentation, communications and invoicing; Cancellations, exchanges, and itinerary management; 24/7 service support.

VA will award this task order under Duluth Travel Inc.'s existing General Services Administration (GSA) Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) contract, number 47QMCB25D0001, issued under the Travel Agent Services category 561510. Duluth Travel Inc., a Small Business Administration (SBA) certified Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), is located at 2860 Peachtree Industrial Blvd., Ste 1000, Duluth, GA 30097-7906.

Duluth is the sole SDVOSB under this MAS, there are no other SDVOSBs under this MAS. The value of this task order is $29,131,085.00 over a 12-month period of performance. This amount covers the cost of medically authorized Veteran airfare, refundable ticket fees, airline-imposed fees, and Duluth's per-transaction service fees for domestic and international bookings, discounted from Duluth's MAS contract.

CLINS Description/ Est. Cost 0001: Commercial Air Transport Actual cost of plane ticket to include taxes and airline fees 0002: Published FSS Svc. Fee (Full Service) *discounted Domestic: Fee ($)/Ticket International: Fee ($)/Ticket Exchanges: additional service fee is applied Refunds: initial service fee is retained.

The authority and supporting rationale (see GSAR 538.7104-3(b)(1)) and, if applicable, a demonstration of the proposed contractor s unique qualifications to provide the required supply or service. Authority: The statutory exception supporting the placement of this order on a sole source basis is RFO 8.401, specifically GSAR 538.7104-3(b)(1)(i): "The need is of such unusual urgency that following the procedures would result in unacceptable delays in fulfilling that need."

Supporting Rationale: This contract action is necessary to prevent interruption in medically required Veteran travel services, maintain compliance with VHA Beneficiary Travel policy, and ensure Veterans can access authorized care when they cannot self-fund initial transportation. Beneficiary Travel booking support is a continuous, high-volume function: Veterans rely on it daily to reach specialty and other medical appointments that are frequently unavailable at their local facility.

Any gap in this support does not simply delay administrative processing, it directly interrupts Veterans' ability to reach medically necessary care, including time-sensitive and recurring treatment. Many Veterans who require medically necessary travel cannot afford to purchase airline tickets up front and wait for reimbursement. This creates a significant barrier to accessing care, particularly for those needing life-saving transports.

Without a contracted solution, Veterans may be unable to attend appointments, risking serious harm or adverse outcomes. The vendor is essential to ensure timely, reliable access to travel arrangements for these individuals. A full and open competitive acquisition for a requirement of this scope, scale, and specialized operational alignment would require sufficient time for solicitation development, a meaningful proposal preparation period, technical and price evaluation, and award and transition.

That timeline extends well beyond the period VA can sustain without a booking mechanism in place. Compressing a competitive process to fit within a shorter window would itself create unacceptable risk of a flawed evaluation, increased protest exposure, and further delay, outcomes that would compound rather than resolve the urgency. Awarding to Duluth under its existing MAS contract avoids this gap entirely, because Duluth already maintains VA-specific workflows and operational infrastructure and can begin performance immediately upon award, without the stand-up period a new awardee would require.

Absent this action, Veterans would be forced to self-arrange and self-fund travel to authorized care, or VA staff would need to revert to manual, non-automated processing, both of which increase the risk of missed or delayed medical appointments, disrupted continuity of care, and adverse outcomes for Veterans who depend on timely transportation to reach treatment not available locally.

Contractor's Unique Qualifications: The VA's VTP office identified an urgent and compelling need to contract with a responsible source that can immediately mobilize and meet VA's s

The description continues in the official notice.

Contracting contact

• Kurt Tanny · Contracting Officer · [email protected] · (303) 712-5828

As published on the official notice. Ask questions in writing and before any questions deadline the notice sets.

Is your business small enough?

For NAICS 561510, a business counts as small if it has no more than $25.0 million in average annual receipts (SBA size standard, with exceptions in the notes). This notice is not set aside, but the size decides your small business status on it. SBA table, current as of Oct 15, 2026.

Companies that win this kind of work

Federal contractors paid for travel agencies work, who also hold VA contracts (last 12 months): possible competitors, or partners to team with.

• Duluth Travel Inc $29.8 million in this trade

About the buyer

The Department of Veterans Affairs awarded $84.2 billion in contracts in the last 12 months; its biggest suppliers were Optum Public Sector Solutions, Inc., Mckesson Corporation and Triwest Healthcare Alliance Corp. See what VA is buying now.

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