TTUHSC El Paso's Use of Group Purchasing Organization Contracts
Although TTUHSC El Paso actively solicits products and services of various types unilaterally, the breadth and scope of requirements to operate regionally located medical schools and clinics is wide and difficult to standardize.
As a result, it is TTUHSC El Paso’s practice to look for competitively awarded contracts through Group Purchasing Organizations and Cooperatives to which it is a party.
Texas Authority to use such purchase vehicles is derived from the following:
Interlocal Cooperation Act, Texas Government Code, Chapter 791 for Texas based Customers and Section 2054.0565, Texas Government Code, for out of state Customers.
and
Texas Education Code §8.002 permits regional education service centers, at the direction of the Commissioner of Education, to provide services to assist school districts, colleges and universities in improving student performance and increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of school, college and university operations. Authority for such services is granted under Texas Government Code §§ 791.001 et seq as amended. Cooperative Purchasing Services are extended to all Texas State, City and County Government Agencies.
GPO’s and Coop’s additionally offer vendors the opportunity to competitively acquire contract awards that can be easily used for business application beyond a single state or local governmental agency (typically the case with single agency solicitations) and instead offered to the many “members’ of the GPO or Coop group.
The Purchasing Office would strongly recommend vendors consider participating in solicitations offered through the many contract groups to which TTUHSC El Paso is a participant.
State Contracts & Purchasing Cooperative