Summary In Prosthetic & Sensory Aids Service, procures custom prosthetics, wheelchairs, speech devices, vehicle modifications, and specialized medical equipment for veterans. Reviews consults for eligibility, selects cost-effective sources, negotiates with vendors, issues purchase orders via government card, coordinates logistics/drop-shipping, manages returns/warranties, reconciles invoices, and ensures VA regulatory/fiscal compliance to support timely veteran rehabilitation and independence. Responsibilities Quickly deduce from written prescriptions or oral requests what items or services are needed, selecting the most appropriate cost-effective source to deliver the items/service in the most reliable manner. Manages the collection of data to be used in numerous reports to ensure adequate resource funding and compliance. Researches the use of different solicitation methods, ordering or reporting procedures, and purchasing methods to distinguish between different purchasing strategies. Documents the services required per the contractual agreement and monitors, tracks, and trends contractor performance. Completes transaction on the patient's medical record to ensure documentation of exactly what was purchased and issued. Conduct face-to-face and telephone conversations with patients, family members, and private medical staff, contractors, vendors, and co-workers. Speaks calmly and compassionately to severely disabled patients from all walks of life. Skills in dealing with a large community base, vendors, hospital staff and the public is required to display a positive image of the the organization. Providing patient care and support services to an adult population and serves as the point of contact for external customer service inventory needs and support. Resolves conflicts in administering purchase orders, such as protests, claims, duplicate billing & terminations for convenience or default. Examines contracts, purchasing policies, equipment sources, shipping procedures and corresponding terminology to rapidly find the most reasonably priced item to meet requirement. Works independently to complete purchase orders and reconcile charges. Maintains accurate records of transactions and completes all adjustments to computerized system before final payment to vendor is certified. Maintains an inventory of all purchased and consignment equipment with expiration date, imitate exchange and/or replacement of expired stock. Completes written procurement and support notes in medical records to ensure order status is provided to the clinical requester to reduce delivery delays. Performs technical level purchasing support adhering to the Service Directives and Handbooks, policy and memorandums to acquire patient specific medical equipment, supplies and services. Initiates procurement of all outpatient medical requirements. Initiates recall action of identified recall products provided and communicates all findings to the appropriate offices. Verifies accountability of all prosthetics expenditures in both the purchase menu and the prosthetics program and associates all obligations to the individual patient. Ensures the services provided are documented as the @type of service and duration. Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level. Work Schedule: M-F 8:00AM to 4:00PM Telework: This position may be authorized for telework. Position Description/PD#: Purchasing Agent/PD0826VS and PD00825VS Requirements Conditions of Employment You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 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) As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period 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 probationary period or trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest. Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 03/23/2026. Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-06 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. To qualify for this position at the GS-5 level: You must have at least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-04) in the Federal Service, that is directly related to the work of the position and has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties as Purchasing Agent. Qualifying specialized experience includes performing administrative duties in a healthcare setting; reviewing and working with patients' medical records; completing training or assisting in routine and complex specialized purchases for clinics including medical equipment, prosthetic and orthotic appliances; utilizing computer software programs; and communicating with internal and external customers via various methods. ~OR~ SUBSTITUTION OF EDUCATION FOR EXPERIENCE (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED): Possess the successfully completed four (4) years above the high school level in any field for which high school graduation or the equivalent is the normal prerequisite. This education must have been obtained in an accredited business, secretarial or technical school, junior college, college, or university. ~OR~ COMBINATION OF EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATION (TRANSCRIPT REQUIRED): Possess the equivalent combinations of successfully completed post-high school education beyond two (2) years and specialized experience as described above that demonstrates the ability to perform the duties of this Purchasing Agent position. To qualify for this position at the GS-6 level: You must have at least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-05) in the Federal Service, that is directly related to the work of the position and has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties as Purchasing Agent. Specialized experience includes: receiving and analyzing medical equipment, experience in procurement, Review clinical requests, determine sources and determine the availability of replacement parts and alternatives for power mobility, artificial limbs and other pieces of medical equipment; Maintain accurate funding, billing, reconciling of accounts and sub-account balances; utilization of purchase card; Execute price adjustments; resolve any discrepancies, modifications, amendments to purchase orders and cancelations of purchase orders; will also coordinate work with local vendors. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Attention to Detail Customer Service Technical Competence Manages Resources Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements: Work is primarily sedentary and is carried out in an office setting. There exists prolonged periods of working at a computer terminal. Ability to retrieve equipment from a storage room is required. Climbing associated with stocking of equipment and other items in storage areas is necessary. Incumbent may carry/lift items weighing up to twenty-five (25) pounds. Normal safety precautions are adequate. The work involves moderate discomfort when visiting sites away from the office. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/. Education A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on 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/. NOTE: If your school has changed names, or is no longer in existence, you must provide this information in your application. 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. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. 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.
