Will COVID Vaccines Be Required for Federal Contractors, and How Would a Mandate Be Enforced?

Source: govexec.com

As more Americans are getting vaccinated against COVID-19 and start to think about returning to workplaces, there is much debate over how, if at all, employers can or should require inoculations. Federal contractors are among those grappling with such questions.

While the federal government is not requiring vaccines for individuals, it has a history, dating back to the 1960s, of conditioning “contract awards on contractor compliance with emerging social policy mandates,” wrote Brooke Iley, a partner for labor and employment law at the firm Blank Rome LLP, and Albert Krachman, a partner for government contracts at the firm, in a March post. Therefore, “do not be surprised if, before the end of 2021” there is some type of requirement.

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Users report not being impressed with Beta.Sam.gov redesign

Source: washingtontechnology.com

The General Services Administration may have redesigned the look and feel of Beta.Sam.gov, but it has left many users still being unimpressed.

GSA unveiled the redesign on April 25 as it prepares to integrate nearly all procurement and contracting information into Sam.gov, after which "beta" will be droppedfrom its name.

Some areas are improvements as I wrote about last week, but since then the comments have been mostly negative. GSA to date has not responded to three requests for comment on the issues people are having.

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COVID-19 Has Encouraged Procurement and Contracting Reform

Source: governmentciomedia.com

The demands of responding to COVID-19 has encouraged reforms in federal procurement. This has been especially pronounced in the government’s expansion of remote network access to accommodate a dispersed workforce.

Speaking at the 2021 AFCEA Health IT Acquisition & Public Health forum, representatives from across the federal government outlined how their agencies have helped streamline the acquisitions process and opened the competitive space to smaller and mid-sized firms in order to facilitate IT development.

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