Montgomery County approves $2.7M in contracts related to pandemic and election – The Reporter

NORRISTOWN Montgomery County Commissioners authorized more than $2.7 million worth of contracts last week as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic continues, and the county prepares for an unprecedented voting turnout in the Nov. 3 General Election.

Of the seven new and amended agreements that were presented during last Thursdays Montgomery County Board of Commissioners meeting, the contract between the Montgomery County Department of Public Safety and Motorola Solutions Inc., of Chicago, tops the list as the most expensive, coming in at a whopping $1,991,234.40.

The nearly $2 million agreement covers the upgrade of over-the-air management of all APX subscriber radios on the new public radio system used by public safety staff, police officers, firefighters, and emergency medical technicians, the contract states.

This radio system upgrade will eliminate the person-to-person, or person-to-device, contact that is necessary to make radio programming changes, the contract states.

A $450,000 contract with multiple providers covers temporary staffing services required to answer the high volume of telephone calls related to the 2020 general election.

The six-figure contract is between the countys Office of Voter Services and the following firms.

As for the potential for high volume of calls, the countys voter services office cited the relocation of polling places and increased requests for mail-in ballots.

A previously approved contract between the Montgomery County Correctional Facility and INX Indoor Air Quality, of Exton was amended during last weeks meeting.

Officials authorized another $189,040 for the suburban company to provide for air duct cleaning services for the prisons heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system as the services and equipment [were] determined to be necessary outside of the original estimated project costs, according to the contract amendment.

The contract figure now stands at $494,040.

A $43,471 agreement between the countys IT department and New Era Technology of Islandia, N.Y., provides for additional SIP core licenses for the countys remote workforce.

The commissioners approved several contracts dealing with the Montgomery County Office of Health and Human Services.

An additional $15,000 was authorized for influenza vaccination scheduling services. The initial agreement between the county health department and HMFDF Inc. dba Solv Health, of San Francisco, is now valued at $42,000.

A $25,398 agreement with Safeware Inc., of Lanham, Md., covers disposable gloves for health workers at the countys area COVID-19 testing sites. According to the contracts, the gloves were made available through a U.S. Communities Cooperative Contract

Additionally, a $12,000 contract with TJ Billing Company of Lafayette Hill provides for insurance claim submission services for COVID[-19] tests for the [Montgomery County] Office of Public Health.

According to the contract, the rates must not exceed $6.75 for new tests and $8.20 for previous tests, and the amendment provides for set-up with eight insurance carriers to enable electronic billing.

The next Montgomery County Board of Commissioners meeting is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Oct. 29.

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Montgomery County approves $2.7M in contracts related to pandemic and election - The Reporter