DHS USCG - Boating Safety Public Health Effort - MRAS

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), through the General Services Administration (GSA), is conducting market research to identify potential vendors with expertise in public health consulting, epidemiological support, and strategic outreach. This initiative is spearheaded by the U.S. Coast Guard as part of their ongoing efforts to enhance recreational boating safety through innovative public health strategies. The Coast Guard has previously utilized Federal assistance grants to fund pilot projects that have successfully advanced boating safety measures. These projects have resulted in a validated syndromic surveillance definition for boating injuries and fostered essential partnerships between state-level boating law administrators and public health officials.

The current Request for Information (RFI) seeks to transition these successful pilot projects into a sustainable, contract-based model that can be scaled across multiple states. The overarching goal is to replicate effective methodologies, develop new injury prevention strategies, and establish foundational partnerships necessary for a future data ecosystem. Vendors are expected to demonstrate their ability to transition grant-funded initiatives into scalable programs under Federal contracts effectively. Additionally, they should articulate their approach to facilitating collaboration and Data Use Agreements (DUAs) between disparate public sector entities such as State Boating Law Administrators and State Departments of Health.

Moreover, the RFI emphasizes the importance of integrating expertise from non-profit organizations and medical societies that have contributed significantly to foundational work in this domain. Respondents are encouraged to describe their strategic approach for teaming with these organizations and leveraging existing Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) from the medical and boating safety communities. This collaboration aims to ensure continuity and clinical accuracy in ongoing efforts.

Finally, vendors are asked to detail their technical capabilities in querying, analyzing, and interpreting complex public health databases like NEMSIS, NSSP, ESSENCE, among others. They should provide past performance examples where they have applied data linkage techniques or validated syndromic definitions successfully. Furthermore, respondents should showcase their ability to translate complex epidemiological data into targeted public safety campaigns tailored toward specific risk factors such as geographic hotspots or specific demographics.