The Defense Health Agency Contracting Activity (DHACA), on behalf of the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research (WRAIR) Integrative Systems Biology Branch, has issued a Special Notice / Notice of Intent to Sole Source for Sepsis Research Blood Sample Collection Services. The requirement is Maryland-based and supports the SeptiBurnAlert sepsis biomarker research program.
Opportunity details
Notice number: HT942523P0084
Notice type: Special Notice / Notice of Intent to Sole Source
Issuer: U.S. Department of Defense, Defense Health Agency Contracting Activity
Requiring activity: Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Integrative Systems Biology Branch
Posted: September 1, 2026
Capability statement deadline: October 15, 2026 at 10:00 AM Eastern Time
Place of performance: Columbia, Maryland 21044
NAICS: 541714, Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology)
PSC: AN11, Health R&D Services / Health Care Services / Basic Research
Set-aside: None stated
Funding/value: No authoritative contract value or ceiling is published in the notice.
Scope and incumbent position
The Government intends to extend and restructure current services from firm-fixed-price to a cost-type research and development contract. The work requires collection of blood samples from septic and non-septic burn patients together with longitudinal clinical data for assessment of sepsis biomarkers and refinement and validation of the SeptiBurnAlert program. The notice states that MedStar Health Research Institute, Inc. (MHRI), Columbia, Maryland, is currently collecting the required samples and clinical data under an approved Institutional Review Board protocol and is actively recruiting subjects that meet the specified thermal-injury criteria.
The Government identifies MHRI as the intended sole source and the only technically acceptable vendor because the required blood-sample sources are not commercially available. This is not a request for competitive proposals, and the notice states that no solicitation document exists. Meaningful written capability submissions from other parties will be considered only to determine whether competition is in the Government’s best interest.
Submission method and requirements
Interested parties that can legitimately demonstrate equivalent capability may submit a capability statement as a PDF, Microsoft Word, or Excel attachment to Nicole Applegate at nicole.v.applegate.civ@health.mil no later than October 15, 2026 at 10:00 AM Eastern Time. No separate forms or solicitation package are published with the notice. No grant match or cost share applies because this is a federal procurement notice rather than a grant.
Atlas fit analysis
Atlas Opportunity Score: 62/100. The work is a substantive Maryland biomedical-research procurement, but its practical competitive value is limited because the Government expressly intends a sole-source continuation with the incumbent and identifies MHRI as the only technically acceptable vendor.
N9+ Fit Score: 0/100. The Nonagon N9+ remote physical examination platform does not address the core requirement for IRB-governed burn-patient blood-sample collection and longitudinal clinical research data. Atlas will not force N9+ into this opportunity.
QC Healthcare / Dr. Miltie Fit: 0/100 for direct prime response. Dr. Miltie, LLC is not cleared to respond directly. Available records do not establish an existing approved IRB protocol for the specified burn-patient cohort, active recruitment of the required thermally injured subjects, access to the non-commercial blood samples, or the incumbent research infrastructure described by the Government. No qualification or applicant-controlled documentation will be fabricated.
Eligible Maryland organization
MedStar Health Research Institute: 100/100 organization fit. MHRI is the named intended sole source, current performer, and organization the Government identifies as the only technically acceptable vendor. Atlas does not treat this as an outreach target because MHRI already holds the incumbent capability and the notice is a sole-source continuation action.
Atlas action
Monitor the official SAM.gov notice for any modification, competition decision, or subsequent solicitation. Do not initiate routine applicant/vendor outreach. Any non-incumbent response would require independently verified evidence of equivalent IRB-approved clinical-sample access and research capability before submission.