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IT Acquisition Process

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IT Category Management Process
New Process Clarifications (diagram) [PDF - 78 KB]
New Process Clarifications (text) [PDF - 88 KB]

As part of the HHS and IHS implementation of the Federal IT Acquisitions Reform Act (FITARA), several changes have been implemented with regards to IT Acquisition via UFMS in the IHS.

In reference to an Agency disseminated CIO Memo Titled:  FY2018 FITARA Requirements New provided by Capt. Mark Rives, IHS CIO on September 28, 2017. Special Category Approvers for Information Technology (IT) acquisitions were established in UFMS to meet the requirements for HHS CIO Delegation of Acquisitions Approval as required under the Federal IT Acquisitions Reform Act (FITARA).

Additionally, IHS as referenced within the memo IHS has established new workflows and processes to justify our procurements and establish our ability to be good custodians of tax payer funds, and these changes will continue as we improve our IT Governance processes.

This includes:

  1. Implementation of the IT Agency Procurement Request (ITAPR) New form is required for all IT acquisitions and projects. The APR form assists in gathering and reporting of additional IT Governance and Acquisition details, as required by the FITARA (Federal IT Acquisitions Reform Act). The IT APR form must be included with all UFMS requisitions and requisition amendments.

  2. Implementation of an Approved Equipment List (AEL) & Approved Software List (ASL) New which limits the specifications of IT equipment to a lowest cost, technically acceptable model.With anything beyond what is approved in the AEL requiring substantial justification and approval by the IHS CIO.

  3. The Device Enrollment Program (DEP) provides a fast, streamlined way to deploy iOS and macOS devices that your business has purchased directly from Apple or from a participating Apple Authorized Reseller or carrier. You can automatically enroll devices in MDM without having to physically touch or prep the devices before users get them. And with MDM, you can further simplify the setup process for users by removing specific steps in the Setup Assistant, so users are up and running quickly.

    If Apple products are purchased from a vendor other than Apple, please verify before purchasing that the vendor has a DEP Reseller ID# and that number is provided prior to the purchase. Please contact Phillip.Wise@ihs.gov or Michelle.Riedel@ihs.gov to have the vendor added to the IHS account so the devices will be automatically added to the IHS MDM server.

  4. Compliance with Accessibility Requirements of all IT Procurement as subject to Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, and Part 339 of the HHS Acquisition Regulations (HHSAR).

  5. Adherence to the Capital Planning & Investment Control Process (CPIC) threshold and requirements as defined in the Indian Health Manual (IHM) Part 8, Chapter 4 in which any IHS IT investment, acquisition, or project with five-year costs that total $25,000 or greater requires adherence to a review and approval process from both within and, possibly, outside the IHS, depending on the costs.An approved Business Need Statement (BNS) and/or Business Case under the Capital Planning and Investment Control Process.

Additional information and artifacts regarding the aforementioned requirements are located in the resources section of the CPIC Homepage.

We thank you in advance for your cooperation.

Questions may be addressed to the following.

CPIC Support

508 Compliance

Apple DEP Compliance

AEL/ASL

UFMS Approvals