Purchasing Agent

Summary

The Purchasing Agent is a member of Prosthetic & Sensory Aids Service (PSAS) within the Prosthetic Service Line. The incumbent has active inpatient implant care coordination and outpatient treatment program and inventory responsibility in a critical, direct patient care, Veteran-facing position and must work directly with the Veteran, his/her family, surgeon or clinical provider, and community care discharge planning staff to initiate procurement of all outpatient medical requirements.

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Duties

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This position serves as a Purchasing Agent for the Prosthetics Service for the Birmingham, Alabama VA Health Care System's VA Clinic, Bessemer, Alabama.

Duties include, but may not be limited to the following:

• Coordinates the delivery of home medical equipment, including oxygen therapy, through contracted providers.
• Reconciles all invoices for certification of payment by reviewing Veterans' records against invoices presented to ensure that accurate cost is being charged for the service or item.
• Makes purchases through an automated process or through utilization of a purchase card.
• Receives and analyzes request forms and prescriptions from physicians, therapists, patients and patient representatives.
• Compares diagnoses to the equipment or services normally provided for the condition.
• Provides services and assistance to Veterans across a wide range of age groups.
• Operates the Prosthetics and Sensory Aids Service (PSAS) software package to maintain detailed and accurate accounting of all actions taken for veterans and documents their records to show all items and services provided.
• Advises patients, family members or other representatives on decisions, appeal rights, and equipment safety and maintenance.
• Computes correct total costs and resolves any discrepancies with the vendors.
• Advises physicians and other professional staff on the availability and acquisition of prosthetic devices or services.
• Reviews requests for completeness, including proper documentation and justification of items, services and home medical equipment being requested.
• Ensures that pending requests are posted to the suspense logs and enters data to verify workload statistics used to determine Prosthetics funding.
• Maintains an accurate record of transactions.
• Reconciles daily activity sheets with actual service expenditures.
• Posts all adjustments that affect service fund control points in a timely manner to ensure availability of funds.
• Performs in strict conformance with proper accounting procedures.
• Issues items from stock and initiates purchase orders to replenish stock items when needed.
• Identifies priorities on pending requests to comply with mandated timeliness standards.
• Responsible for adhering to regulations and instructions regarding computer security and access to files, codes, etc.
• Responsible for protecting information from unauthorized release, loss, alteration or deletion of regular access to printed and electronic files containing sensitive information.
• Performs other related duties as assigned.

Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 8:00am-4:30pm, full-time. Work schedule subject to change based on agency needs.

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Telework: VA supports the use of telework as a way to help attract and retain talented individuals in public service, increase worker productivity, and better prepare the agency to operate during emergencies. This position may be authorized for telework on an ad hoc basis. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process.

Position Description/PD# : Purchasing Agent / PD11378A

Travel : Yes, 25%

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized

Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Authorized

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO): Not Authorized

Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. This position requires the application, assessment, and questionnaire to be fully completed. The assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.

• 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 ( Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification 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, 09/28/2026.

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.

You may qualify based on your experience as described below:

• Specialized Experience: To qualify for this position at the GS-6 level, you must have at least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-5 level in the Federal service that equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of this Purchasing Agent position. Specialized experience includes, but is not limited to: experience performing clerical or assistant duties in support of purchasing and procurement; procuring supplies and services to meet the purchase, rental, or lease needs of an organization; working with medical staff to determine procurement needs and priorities; resolving a variety of shipment, payment, or other discrepancies in support of procurement programs and operations; purchasing various equipment, supplies, and services through the use of a purchase card; and assembling and/or summarizing information from files and documents as required to create reports utilizing automated computerized supply/inventory management systems and Microsoft Office software programs such as MS Word and Excel.

NOTE: 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.

Preferred Experience: One year of purchasing experience.

Competencies:

• Contracting/Procurement: Knowledge of various types of contracts, techniques or requirements (for example, Federal Acquisition Regulation) for contracting or procurement, and contract negotiation and administration.
• Compliance: Knowledge of procedures for assessing, evaluating, and monitoring programs or projects for compliance with Federal laws, regulations, and guidance.
• Control of Funds: Knowledge of the principles, procedures, and requirements for maintaining control and accountability of obligations and expenditures for all appropriations and fund accounts (for example, revolving, non-appropriated, multiyear, and single-year appropriations).
• Computer Skills: Uses computers, software applications, databases, and automated systems to accomplish work.

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; religious; 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.

Physical Requirements: Work is primarily sedentary when conducting purchasing functions for PSAS. However, while conducting inventory management functions, the incumbent may work comfortably in a warehouse environment, sitting, standing, walking, bending, lifting, carrying, retrieving and managing inventory. Prolonged periods of working at a computer terminal are required. 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. At times, the employee may be required to wear protective clothing when visiting the Prosthetic and Sensory Aids Fabrication Laboratory. The position often requires walking between the main medical center and Prosthetics locations to conduct professional duties.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at

Education

There is no educational substitution at this grade level.

Additional information

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.

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. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employees credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. 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. For more information, visit the OPM website at

Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments.

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.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.