Summary OUR MISSION: To fulfill President Lincoln's promise "To care for those who have served in our nation's military and for their families, caregivers, and survivors" - by serving and honoring the men and women who are America's Veterans. How would you like to become a part of a team providing compassionate whole health care to Veterans? Responsibilities The duties and responsibilities include but are not limited to the following: Pharmaceutical Purchasing and Distribution: Serve as ordering officer for pharmacy service, delegated by the VA National Acquisition Center (NAC) while maintaining annual training requirements. Initiates ordering requirements of pharmaceuticals, specialty, and supply items through pharmacy prime vendors multi complex accounts or other mandatory sources. Responsible for adherence to federal contracts and compliance with federal regulations regarding open market, ensuring inventory control through perpetual evaluation. Assists in determining ordering intervals and stock levels appropriate to meet changes in formulary, brand to AB rated generic drugs, contract changes, conversions, new drug indications including backorders and seasonal changes. Procures all @types of pharmaceuticals including controlled and non-controlled drugs within established VA ordering guidelines, policies, and procedures within inventory management specialized area with the understanding of proper budget utilization. Purchases using National contracts (NAT), Federal supply schedules (FSS), Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA) and open market etc. to ensure compliance with federal acquisition regulations, and policy, understanding the contracting hierarchy of all purchases. Incumbent will download invoices daily as part of the drug accountability process or other inventory management system. Incumbent may be required to obtain necessary certification to order narcotic medications through pharmacy prime vendor. Purchases using government issued credit cards for micro purchase limits with understanding of when to use; while maintaining required proper documentation, and reconciliation of receipt of all orders for auditing and accountability purposes, training, etc. Reconciles all credit card purchases in a timely manner. Possesses technical knowledge of VA and regulatory agency requirements for drug storage and special requirements for procurement, storage, distribution, and handling of various hazardous and non-hazardous drug classes. Maintains knowledge of principles, policies and state and federal laws and regulations related to controlled substances. Utilizes proper inventory management to ensure sufficient stock of medications and supply are available to meet the needs of the pharmacy and patient care. Removes expired medications from stock and processes them for safe removal, according to VHA Directives and standard operating procedures. Maintains a clean working environment and updates shelf labels as contracts dictate. Assists in training and orients new personnel, volunteers, students, etc., in the technical phases of operations. 16. Possesses technical working knowledge and follows established policies and procedures of usage rates, stock levels, inventory maintenance concepts including just-in-time inventory and assist in annual or semiannual pharmacy wall-to-wall inventory. Possesses technical knowledge of all aspects of drug characteristics and nomenclature for procurement and stock maintenance including: Generic and brand names Dosage forms Various systems of weights and measures Drug product codes Drug AB rating equivalence Incumbent must maintain training requirements, national pharmacy technician certification and meet annual competencies required for this position. Complexity: The employee's work will involve performing various procurement support duties involved in the use of different and unrelated procedures and methods. The incumbent(s) will spend the majority of time (over 80%) correlating transactions that are not completely standardized; dealing with continually changing deadlines and priorities; completing assigned functions that are relatively broad and varied. The employee will use different established procedures to screen incoming purchase request item descriptions for accuracy and adequacy; and will then monitor the status of the associated purchase order. The employee will review and reconcile various documents and records and resolve a variety of problems through the coordination with vendors and personnel in receiving, supply and check-in areas. The incumbent will monitor the status of deliveries, reconciling invoices to ensure quantities invoiced are accounted and received. The employee will work one on one with vendors and suppliers to resolve regular problems and discuss with lead or management as indicated. These problems include (but not limited to) billing issues, delivery dates, the quantity of items ordered. The employee makes decisions independently with vendors, contractors, and suppliers using prescribed guidelines set forth for the position. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 7:30 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Telework: Not available. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job. All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959. Must be proficient in written and spoken English. Subject to background/security investigation. Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP). Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement. As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Qualifications Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met. Basic Requirements: Citizenship. Be a citizen of the United States. Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with 38 U.S.C. § 7407(a). Education or Experience: 1) None required. (2) For all grade levels and positions that accept both education and experience to qualify, equivalent combinations of qualifying education and experience that total at least 100% are qualifying. The combined percentage is determined by adding total qualifying experience as a percentage of the experience required for the grade level to the education as a percentage of the education required for the grade level. Certification: For positions above the full performance level, the employee must pass a national certification exam and hold an active national certification through either: (1) Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB), Certified Pharmacy Technician (CPhT). OR (2) National Healthcareer Association (NHA), Certified Pharmacy Technician (ExCPT). English Language Proficiency: Pharmacy Technician candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f). Grandfathering Provision. The following is the standard grandfathering policy for all Title 38 hybrid qualification standards. Some of these provisions may not apply to this occupation. Please carefully review the qualification standard to determine the specific education and/or licensure/certification/ registration requirements that apply to this occupation. All persons employed in VHA in this occupation on the effective date of this qualification standard are considered to have met all qualification requirements for the title, series and grade held, including positive education and licensure/certification/registration that are part of the basic requirements of the occupation. For employees who do not meet all the basic requirements required in this standard, but who met the qualifications applicable to the position at the time they were appointed to it, the following provisions apply:(1) Employees may be reassigned, promoted up to and including the full performance (journey) level or changed to lower grade within the occupation but may not be promoted beyond the journeyman level or placed in supervisory or managerial positions.(2) Employees in an occupation that requires a licensure/certification/ registration only at higher grade levels must meet the licensure/ certification/registration requirement before they can be promoted to those higher grade levels.(3) Employees who are appointed on a temporary basis prior to the effective date of the qualification standard may not have their temporary appointment extended or be reappointed on a temporary or permanent basis until they fully meet the basic requirements of the standard.(4) Employees who are converted to title 38 hybrid status under this provision and subsequently leave the occupation lose protected status and must meet the full VA qualification standard requirements in effect at the time of re-entry to the occupation.(5) Employees initially grandfathered into this occupation who subsequently obtain additional education and/or licensure/certification/registration that meet all the basic requirements of this qualification standard must maintain the required credentials as a condition of employment in the occupation. May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria). Pharmacy Technician Procurement/Inventory, GS-08: Experience. Candidates must possess one year of experience equivalent to the next lower grade level and demonstrate the KSAs below. AND Certification: For positions above the full performance level, the employee must pass a national certification exam and hold an active national certification through either: PTCB as a CPhT. OR NHA as a ExCPT Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs): In addition to the experience above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs for all GS-08 assignments and meet any additional KSAs for the assignment, if indicated: Comprehensive knowledge of concepts, principles, methodology and policies in a specialized area or section of pharmacy (such as sterile compounding, controlled substances, automation, clinical pharmacy, contact center, etc.) Note: See Specialized Area.in the Definitions Section. Skill in training and orienting new and existing pharmacy facility employees and students on proper policies and procedures. Ability to evaluate, analyze and coordinate workflow and work activities within a specialized area or section of the pharmacy. Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-08. Physical Requirements: VA Regulations, specifically VA Handbook 5019. Education Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/. Additional Information Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed. During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status. VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement. Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.
