The Department of Veterans Affairs issued a new request for information on June 2 for cloud-managed and transition services to handle the agency's data enterprise infrastructure.

Related: Read the RFI

The RFI — which seeks information from industry on the best ways to both migrate and maintain data on a cloud computing system — outlines the VA's intention to shift its information technology resources into a data-consolidated environment.

"The objective is to develop/acquire an internal VA-owned Managed Cloud Service capability," the RFI said. "The Cloud Managed Service provider shall manage a portfolio of cloud computing services across multiple cloud service provider (CSP) offerings, utilizing existing VA owned tools and/or CSP tools, recommending to VA flexible solutions for the delivery of cloud computing services."

The VA recently shuttered a request for proposal on May 24, five days after it was issued, for two digital centers to manage the data for its Memorial Benefits Management Services Project and the Benefits Delivery Network Project as part of the agency's Veteran-focused Integration Process, or VIP.

The June 2 RFI said that among the cloud transfer requirements would be managing project intake and execution of VA programs, including the VIP framework, which aims to reduce documentation and ease the application process for various veteran benefits.

"The vision is to make profound changes in the VA computing environment, to leverage existing efforts, to forge a path on how to move the enterprise to full cloud adoption and significantly improve VA's delivery of enhancements to veteran health, benefits and service delivery programs while driving down information technology sustainment costs and optimizing resources," the RFI said.

VA Secretary David Shulkin said in a May 31 White House briefing that the agency was pursuing IT modernization moves, but would require more resources to update the systems that run its massive health care and benefits networks. The president's recent budget proposed a $215 million cut to IT acquisition at the VA, despite budget increases in other areas.

"Currently, 75 percent of our IT budget is just maintenance and sustaining our infrastructure, because our legacy systems are old and are at risk of failing," he said. "Our scheduling systems and our financial systems are outdated, and that contributes to these excess wait times. Both systems are in the process of being replaced, but it's going to take years to complete that.

"We have to modernize all of our IT systems to make them commercially viable and cloud-based solutions to the maximum extent possible."

The new RFI calls for both Cloud Transition Professional Services and Cloud Managed Services with specific skills for both, including:

Cloud Transition Professional Services

  • Program governance and operational support for all aspects of cloud and infrastructure transition
  • Managed cloud services implementation support for both internal and external cloud management
  • Ongoing network modernization and convergence support
  • Ongoing Unified Communications (UC) support for infrastructure support
  • Ongoing data center consolidation support

Cloud Managed Services

  • Cloud management "core" services operation managed service
  • Cloud management "higher value" services operation managed service

Interested industry stakeholders have until June 12 to submit a response to the RFI. For more information, contact Troy Loveland at

troy.loveland@va.gov
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