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Office of Acquisition & Materiel Management

Policies and Regulations - Information Letter 90-99-2

90-99-2 Operator and Biomedical Maintenance Training Including Lodging and Travel

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Department of Veterans Affairs
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Acquisition and Materiel Management
Washington DC 20420



IL 90-99-2
February 11, 1999

Office of Acquisition and Materiel Management Information Letter

TO: Veterans Integrated Service Network Directors; Directors, VA Medical Center Activities, Domiciliary, Outpatient Clinics, Medical and Regional Office Centers, and Regional Offices; Directors, Denver Acquisition and Logistics Center, Austin Automation Center, Records Management Center, VBA Benefits Delivery Centers, and VA Health Administration Center; Director, National Cemetery System; and, the Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer for the National Acquisition Center
ATTN: Head of the Contracting Activity
SUBJECT: Operator and Biomedical Maintenance Training Including Lodging and Travel
  1. It is the policy of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to train the operators of medical equipment and the bio-medical engineers/technicians to operate and maintain the equipment to provide the most efficient use of the equipment.   Many companies that provide the equipment to the VA offer courses in the operation and maintenance of the equipment to their commercial customers.   This training should be made available to VA personnel and employees should be permitted to travel to the training site for the scheduled training.
  2. Since operator and maintenance training enhances the use and value of the equipment, it should be included in the purchase of the equipment when available from the supplier of the equipment.   The training should include tuition, lodging, and travel to avoid loss of the training due to insufficient travel funds at the local facility.
  3. Payment from a non-Federal source for travel expenses may be accepted for training courses, except for vendor promotional training (see MP-1, Part II, Chapter 2, Paragraph 3).   The contractor may reimburse the VA, and the VA may credit the appropriate agency accounts, or the contractor may provide in-kind goods or services (tickets, lodging, meals) directly to the employee designated for training.
  4. Please direct any questions concerning the above to Sandi Murbach, Procurement Analyst, at (708) 786-5141.



/s/David S. Derr
Associate Deputy Assistant Secretary
for Acquisitions (90A)

Distribution: RPC 7029