SBA Hosts Business Matchmaking to Link Small Businesses with Federal Contract Opportunities during National Small ...

WASHINGTON, May 2, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The U.S. Small Business Administration will host a business matchmaking event allowing small businesses to discuss procurement opportunities with major corporations and federal agencies during National Small Business Week on May 22 in Washington, DC. 

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110909/DC65875LOGO)

The event will give small businesses from across the country gathered for National Small Business Week an opportunity to have face-to-face meetings with prime contractors and federal agencies to learn about specific contracting and subcontracting opportunities. This is part of SBA's Procurement Day which will also feature federal contracting panels on gaining access to federal prime contracting and subcontracting opportunities.

The business matchmaking sessions are open to small businesses that register for National Small Business Week.  Small businesses must have a DUNS number, which can be obtained by going to the DUNS official Web site at (www.dnb.com/us), and must be registered in Central Contractor Registration (www.ccr.gov), the federal government's official database of small businesses wishing to secure federal contracts.  

The face-to-face matchmaking meetings will be 15 minutes, matching approximately 150 businesses and 20 buyers based on their compatibility and the buying needs of the federal agencies and corporations.  Small business owners interested in participating must first register for National Small Business Week at www.nationalsmallbusinessweek.com. 

Once registered, they will receive a code to allow them to complete their business matchmaking registration at:  https://nsbw.mybusinessmatches.com.  Registration for the event will close on May 18, 2012.   One session will be held on May 22 from 10:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m. and the second session will be held from 3:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m. 

During the forums, small businesses will learn how to market themselves to the federal government and go after government contracting opportunities.  Once small business owners register for the workshops, they will have the option of attending any of three sessions:

Government Contracting 101: Small Business Contracting Programs (10:00-11:15 a.m.) Insights into Federal Contracting Opportunities with Federal Agency Offices of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBUs) (10:00 a.m.-11:15 a.m. and 11:30 a.m.-12:45 p.m.) Improving your Business through Subcontracting Opportunities (11:30 a.m.-12:45 p.m.)

For more information about the Matchmaking event, visit: https://nsbw.mybusinessmatches.com and National Small Business Week http://www.nationalsmallbusinessweek.com.

Small Business Week 2012 sponsors and cosponsors include: AARP, Association of Small Business Development Companies, AT&T, Dun & Bradstreet, InterContinental Hotels Group, International Franchise Association, Lockheed Martin, Microsoft, National Association of Development Companies, National Association of Government Guaranteed Lenders,  National Association for the Self-Employed, National Small Business Association, Neustar, Northrop Grumman, Office Depot, Paychex, Inc., Prudential, Raytheon, Sage Software, Inc., Salesgenie, SCORE, Small Business Investor Alliance, T-Mobile, VISA, Wall Street Journal and Women Impacting Public Policy.

The U.S. Small Business Administration's participation in this cosponsored activity does not constitute an express or implied endorsement of any cosponsor's, donor's, grantee's, contractor's or participant's opinions, products, or services. All SBA programs and cosponsored programs are extended to the public on a nondiscriminatory basis. Reasonable arrangements for persons with disabilities will be made, if requested at least 2 weeks in advance, by contacting sbw@sba.gov. Cosponsorship Authorization #SBW2012.

Contact: Tiffani Clements (202) 401-0035
Internet Address: http://www.sba.gov/news
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SOURCE U.S. Small Business Administration

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McKesson Wins $31.6 Billion Veterans Agency Drug Contract - Bloomberg

McKesson Corp. (MCK) won a Department of Veterans Affairs drug contract valued at as much as $31.6 billion over as many as eight years, the agency said in a statement today.

The San Francisco-based company has been the VA’s primary medicine supplier for veterans hospitals and the department’s mail-order pharmacies since 2004. McKesson, the largest U.S. drug distributor based on revenue, has received as much as $27 billion in orders under the current contract.

It beat Cardinal Health Inc. (CAH), based in Dublin, Ohio, and the Valley Forge, Pennsylvania-based AmerisourceBergen Corp. (ABC) for the new contract.

The agreement “will provide an overall savings to the government of approximately $3.26 billion,” according to the VA statement posted on the Federal Business Opportunities website.

McKesson shares rose as much as 4.7 percent to $91.99 in late trading. The shares had risen 13 percent this year before today’s announcement.

VA officials had hoped to award the new contract by the end of March, according to a December letter from Eric Shinseki, the VA secretary, to a U.S. lawmaker. The award was delayed after two small businesses challenged the VA’s decision to exclude small businesses from the new drug contract.

The Government Accountability Office, which arbitrates contract disputes, denied one protest on April 6. The second company withdrew its GAO protest on April 9, though it also filed a separate challenge with the department.

McKesson is “extremely pleased” to continue its work as the VA’s primary drug supplier, John Hammergren, the company’s chairman and chief executive officer, said in a statement.

“We are confident in our ability to meet the VA’s growing needs over the term of our relationship, and in the process create significant value for the VA and for McKesson’s shareholders,” he said.

Josh Taylor, a VA spokesman, didn’t immediately respond to an e-mail seeking comment.

Congress and the VA’s inspector general are investigating illegal spending through the current contract with McKesson, which is also used by other agencies, including the U.S. Bureau of Prisons and the Indian Health Service.

VA officials have said the McKesson contract was used to make as much as $1.2 billion in unauthorized and potentially illegal purchases that weren’t explicitly covered by the agreement. The items bought included generic drugs, condoms and sunscreen.

W. Scott Gould, a deputy VA secretary, told lawmakers at a February hearing that some of the spending was illegal. Agency staff didn’t always seek competitive bids for some items bought from McKesson, as required by federal acquisition regulations, he said.

McKesson abided by the terms of the contract, Gould said.

Cardinal Health and AmerisourceBergen spokesmen didn’t immediately respond to e-mails and phone calls seeking comment.

To contact the reporter on this story: Kathleen Miller in Washington at kmiller01@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Stephanie Stoughton at sstoughton@bloomberg.net

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