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Summary

The Association of Public Health Laboratories (APHL), in cooperation with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is seeking up to two (2) public health laboratories (PHLs) to provide testing in a flexible, shared services model that enhances Legionella case and outbreak investigation capacity to support CDC, state and local jurisdictions. The selected Legionella Reference Center(s) (LRCs) will provide a variety of testing services related to Legionella outbreak response including clinical and environmental culture, molecular detection (nucleic acid amplification) and next generation sequencing (NGS).

Eligibility

Eligible laboratories include all PHLs with the following capabilities and facilities in place. Specific expectations regarding methodologies to be used by the awardees are outlined in Appendix A. All applicants are required to agree to the minimum requirements (as outlined in Appendix B).

  1. Applicants must meet the following eligibility requirements:
    • ​Currently performing isolation of Legionella species from clinical specimens and environmental samples
    • Currently performing nucleic acid amplification testing (NAAT) for Legionella species, Legionella pneum​ophila (LP) and LP serogroup 1 (LP1) on clinical specimens and isolates in compliance with CLIA requirements
    • Currently conducting next generation sequencing on bacterial isolates and ability to have an NGS test for Legionella isolates by July 1, 2025
    • Sufficient equipment, laboratory space and workforce capacity for the proposed work described in Appendix A
    • Willing to alter or amend existing testing protocols or workflows at the request of APHL and CDC
    • Willing to provide technical assistance, training and SOPs to other jurisdictions to improve testing capacity
    • Has a Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) in place to meet clinical testing workflows and reporting requirements
    • Ability to provide consultations to submitters around sample collection, sample submission and result interpretation
    • Willingness and ability to respond to Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests related to Legionella testing
    • Ability to contract with APHL or has an existing relationship with a third party that can contract directly with APHL on behalf of the laboratory

Anticipated RFP Schedule

November 18, 2024 – RFP Issued

December 5, 2024 – Informational Teleconference at 2:00 pm ET (optional)

December 13, 2024 – Letter of Intent Due to APHL by 5:00 pm ET

January 17, 2025 – RFP Responses Due to APHL by 5:00 pm ET

February 3, 2025 – Proposal review completed

February 4 – 16, 2025 – As needed, follow-up interviews

February 17, 2025 – Final review completed and awardees selected

Spring 2025 – Establish submission and result reporting processes,

validation of assays and training activities, as needed

July 1, 2025 – Anticipated Contract Start Date

July 2025 – LRC(s) begin accepting samples/specimens/isolates from submitting laboratories​


Response Submittal

Confirmation of Intent to Respond

APHL requires that prospective applicants submit a brief email statement to elizabeth.toure@aphl.org and infectious.diseases@aphl.org indicating an intent to submit a proposal. APHL must receive this email by no later than 5:00pm ET on December 13, 2024. To allow for appropriate review process planning, a letter of intent is required for consideration.​

Final Response

APHL must receive complete responses by 5:00 pm ET on January 17, 2025. Please see the Proposal-Required Submissions ​section for items that must be included in the completed proposal. Applicants should send proposals via email to elizabeth.toure@aphl.org​ and infectious.diseases@aphl.org. 

APHL will send an email acknowledging the receipt of your application; if you do not receive an acknowledgement within 48 hours, please call Liz Toure at (240) 485-3860 to confirm receipt.​


RFP Materials​
The Official RFP Document​​ will provide detailed information. APHL will post all RFP-related documents, current schedule information, and answers to submitted questions and clarifications on APHL's procurement site, www.aphl.org/rfp​​.​