Patient Check-in Kiosk for Veterans – RFP Award
Some of the reasons they decided to sole source according to VA
- The needed timeframe was too close to do additional testing
- The magstripe, thermal receipt printer and insurance card scanner could not be reconfigured except by Vecna.
It’s clear that we are disappointed that the VA feels compelled to invest in a proprietary solution especially given their EHR. With over 6500 units installed paying $7500 a unit for mostly industry-wide hardware is unfortunate.
There was no visible effort to actually increase competition or conduct market research checking with the other bidders or of the Association. KMA contacted the contracting officers and pointed out several areas of concern including ADA and accessibility nature of the current design. We did not get a response. We do note they read our email.
As far as we can tell from UL resources, these units are not UL certified.
Below is the official justification document (4 pages) though it appears the final page(s) have been removed.
Our guess is that time of need weighed too heavily on them and that they really had no choice. At some point the VA facility will be completed in Denver (albeit a billion dollars in cost overruns) and maybe we can see the kiosks there.
Official justification document
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Craig is a senior staff writer for Kiosk Industry Group Association. He has 25 years of experience in the industry. He contributed to this article. |