The Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection requirement to expand their Holistic Wellness Support Centers for CBP employees and their families.

• As a component of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is responsible for protecting our Nation’s borders in order to prevent terrorists and terrorist weapons from entering the United States, while facilitating the flow of legitimate trade and travel. CBP is also responsible for apprehending individuals attempting to enter the U.S. illegally; stemming the flow of drugs and other contraband; protecting our agricultural and economic interests from harmful pests and diseases; protecting American business from theft of their intellectual property; and regulating and facilitating international trade, collecting import duties, and enforcing U.S. trade laws.
• CBP is committed to workforce health, wellness, and resilience. The agency has established the CBP Workforce Care Directorate (WCD) as a new organization in the Enterprise Services (ES) office to establish and oversee an enterprise-wide wellness and resilience program for over 65,000 employees and their eligible family members. The mission of the CBP WCD is to promote a positive work environment for all CBP employees and deliver employee services and benefits which facilitate workforce effectiveness.  WCD provides a variety of resources which help employees balance work and personal responsibilities.
• In 2023, CBP launched a new WCD program, Holistic Health Support Centers (HHSCs), which provides CBP personnel and their eligible family members in the center’s area/region with access to holistic wellness activities and services.  Through these HHSCs, CBP seeks to support employees and their eligible family members in holistic wellness areas, such as: mental health; physical wellness; and stress management; to understand and support each other during times of heightened stress; and to provide tools, resources, and training to foster discussions of challenges experienced at work and at home.
• CBP currently has HHSCs operational in three locations: El Paso, Texas; Laredo, Texas; and Tucson, Arizona.
• The El Paso HHSC opened its doors to the over 4,400 CBP employees working in the El Paso area and their eligible family members in May 2023. As of June 12, 2025, this HHSC location has now serviced over 1,600 distinct CBP personnel with over 10,500 wellness services.  In addition, during this same time period over 1,000 distinct CBP employee spouses and eligible household members have engaged in over 7,500 wellness services.   The rate of CBP Employee participation grew by over 128% between Year 1 and Year 2 as the word spread about the wellness services available and trust was built among the serviced community.
• Likewise, the Laredo, Texas, and Tucson, AZ HHSC locations were opened in January 2025 and have quickly gained popularity among CBP personnel.  CBP projects a similar demand and adoption rates will be experienced at any location as HHSCs are opened within additional CBP communities.
• As of July 2025, CBP has 3 HHSCs in operation which provide services to nearly 13,500 CBP employees (20% of the 67k CBP personnel) assigned to duty locations within 150 miles of the El Paso, TX, Laredo, TX, and Tucson, AZ locations.  It is CBP’s goal to continue to grow the HHSC footprint to have at least 1 wellness center within 150 miles of all duty stations within the continental United States, including Hawaii and Puerto Rico.

• In response to the need for increased employer supported programs, CBP is seeking service partner(s) to expand the HHSCs to additional locations throughout the CBP footprint to maximize availability of holistic wellness services for all CBP personnel and eligible family members.   HHSCs may be placed anywhere in the continental United States, including Hawaii and Puerto Rico, positioned near CBP duty stations and serve the employees within 150 miles from each HHSC location.  As funding becomes available, CBP anticipates prioritizing the placement of holistic health support centers at locations that maximize employee coverage and address the greatest need for holistic health services, thereby improving the availability of practitioners to combat work/life stressors experienced by the CBP community.
• CBP is seeking industry feedback on any and all existing HHSC-type concepts and practices to meet a growing demand for in-person, mobile, and virtual workforce and family access to mental health, wellness, and resiliency resources via HHSCs.  Context and details of CBP’s requirements related to the HHSCs are included in the “Background” section as well as in the attached draft HHSC requirements.

CORE OBJECTIVES

In order to meet the unique needs of CBP’s workforce and their eligible family members (including, but not limited to recent CBP retirees and widowed spouses of former CBP employees) in and around the serviced location area, the Contractor shall provide a performance work statement (PWS) demonstrating how it will meet each of the below objectives.

• To establish each HHSC location, the CBP service provider is required to:
  • Identify, acquire and stand-up a facility to house the HHSC staff and begin conducting wellness services in each ordered location.
  • Network with local CBP leadership and personnel to market the HHSC and its services to all CBP personnel and eligible family members;
  • Build CBP community connections and personnel trust through community engagement and outreach events designed to build awareness of the HHSC and the wellness services offered as well as solicit and sign-up new clients.
  • Begin offering in-person, mobile, and virtual Holistic Health and Wellness Services to CBP personnel and eligible family members at duty stations up to 150 miles from the HHSC location within 60 to 90 days of the initial task order award.
  • All client engagements shall begin with an initial wellness assessment, to help identify client wellness goals, needs, and areas of focus.
  • Clients then engage in wellness services best suited for them at no cost to the CBP personnel; Wellness service sessions can vary in length (i.e. Fitness Planning in 30, 60, 90 min sessions).
  • Because the CBP community of employees is spread throughout many different duty locations within a serviced area, services must be provided through multiple mediums to expand the reach to all employees.  Services should be offered:
    • at the HHSC,
    • through mobile vehicle services (i.e. road show where HHSC staff and/or approved network providers take wellness activities to remote locations up to 150 miles from the HHSC building location,
    • through referrals to preferred network providers, which must be fully vetted by the prime service provider.  To reach CBP personnel and their family members in remote locations up to 150 miles from the HHSC facility, servicing vendors can partner with local practitioners near remote CBP duty locations to expand the availability of in-person, hands-on wellness services for clients in hard-to-reach areas.
    • virtually through a vendor controlled virtual wellness services application.
    • Each of these requirements is further detailed in the objectives listed below.
• Objective 1 – Provide Services, Communicate and Connect with CBP
  • The contractor shall provide an HHSC facility operating within a selected area of the designated CBP location(s).  The dedicated space will be utilized for wellness services and activities offered to CBP personnel and eligible family members. The Contractor shall provide CBP with a Facility Plan that documents the contractor’s roadmap for selecting and establishing the HHSC, complete with short-term and long-term milestones and timelines to reach full operations.
  • The contractor shall begin offering holistic health services to CBP personnel and eligible family members within 60 to 90 days of the initial task order award.  A dedicated facility should be available as soon as possible after each task order is awarded to house the holistic health services provided.
  • The contractor may use a temporary location until a permanent location is established.
  • In order to select locations for each dedicated facility, the contractor shall consider, at a minimum, (1) proximity to surrounding CBP facilities in the supported locations, (2) safety of the surrounding community (e.g. low crime rates), and (3) convenience (e.g. free parking available) for CBP personnel and eligible family members to access the facility.
  • The Contractor shall provide the location or list of possible locations being considered for the dedicated facility that support the pricing levels submitted for each service.
  • CBP aims to connect as many CBP employees and eligible family members as possible with available wellness services through a dedicated outreach program. The contractor is required to develop a Communication Plan within 15 days of the initial task order award.  This plan should maximally engage leadership, employees, and eligible family members and raise awareness of the intent, features and services offered in the HHSC.
  • The contractor shall develop a Community Outreach Plan within 15 days of the initial task order award (the plan shall detail outreach events that will occur).  The contractor shall lead outreach events to provide education and information on the wellness approach to CBP Leadership, staff and eligible family members with the goal to maximize awareness and use of all services available to CBP personnel and their eligible family members.
  • The contractor shall begin execution of its Communication Plan (and if appropriate the Community Outreach Plan) within 21 days of the initial task order award.
  • The contractor shall provide CBP leadership with consultation and training on wellness activities that can be provided to clients in the workplace, the community and at home.  The contractor shall provide CBP leadership with marketing materials that can be distributed to CBP Personnel and eligible family members to raise awareness of available support and services provided.
  • The HHSC staff shall ensure priority is given to the connection with and delivery to those CBP employees and their eligible family members who have experienced the death of a CBP employee or other tragic event (where identified by CBP).
• Objective 2 – Provide Wellness Assessments, Holistic Wellness and Mental Health Services
  • CBP has a goal of improving employee overall wellness and developing a more resilient workforce through training to cope with stress and overcoming adversity and uncertainty. At a minimum, the contractor shall offer the following holistic health and wellness services at each supported location (The contractor shall include a description that details what each service will include in their Performance Work Statement (PWS)):
    • Wellness Assessment: a required, holistic assessment conducted to establish a baseline for the client’s emotional, physical, spiritual, and social wellbeing. Assessments should be performed when a client first engages with the holistic wellness program and repeated at times throughout their engagements to assess changes over time. All assessment scores for each client should be captured and tracked to measure improvement across assessments.  Once assessments are completed, the results will be discussed with the client to develop an individualized care plan. Upon completion of their assessment, clients can then choose to engage in any of the wellness services offered through the HHSC (described below):
    • Mental Health Assessment: a BioPsychoSocial (BPSA) assessment, administered by a licensed clinician. This comprehensive approach shall ensure an understanding of the individual’s overall health and functioning within their environment. The BPSA should be conducted during the first appointment following the initial intake screening. Assessment results should then assist in determining the types of evidence-based therapy needed (through the HHSC) or which referrals (psychiatry, medication management, or holistic adjunct therapies) are suggested.
    • Mental Health Services: evidence-based practices delivered by a licensed clinician in a safe, trauma-informed, therapeutic environment to help the client meet their individual treatment goals. Mental Health Services could include multiple types of therapy that focuses on mental health, substance misuse disorders, and/or co-occurring treatment; family and relationship counseling; developing client-centered care plans; and potential treatment of mental health disorders.
    • Life Skills Classes: training covering a broad set of social and behavioral skills (also referred to as “soft” or “non-cognitive” skills) that enable individuals to deal effectively with the demands of everyday life.
    • Wellness Groups: facilitated groups that allow participants to be introduced to different wellness skills to enhance their overall physical, emotional, spiritual, and mental wellbeing. Delivery could be targeted to families and couples along with individuals to assist in strengthening their support systems.
    • Wellness Room: a tranquil space that provides research-backed modalities to help individuals customize their experience in achieving deep relaxation, meditation, calmness, and mindfulness, all of which can help support emotional, physical, and mental recovery.
    • Men’s Support Group: an open or closed group, led by licensed clinicians, that focuses on issues to target concerns specific to men in this setting/population. Some topics for men include emotional health, fatherhood and relationships, career and identity, and men’s health concerns.
    • Women’s Support Group: an open or closed group, led by licensed clinicians, that focuses on issues to target concerns specific to women in this setting/population. Some topics for women include emotional well-being, motherhood and family, career and empowerment, and women’s health issues.
    • Parenting Support Group: an open or closed group, led by licensed clinicians, that helps educate and provide advice, strategies, and tools to parents on how to take care of their minor children. Subjects discussed include child development, effective discipline strategies, and communication skills to enhance parent-child relationships.
    • Fitness Planning: a personalized fitness plan, created by a licensed fitness coach, that is designed based off responses the client gives in their consultation form and considers the client’s wellness goals.
    • Financial Counseling: a service that promotes financial literacy, helps people improve their finances and manage their debts.
    • Nutrition Services: personalized nutrition and meal planning, progress tracking, and nutrition education classes, all provided by a health coach.
    • Meditation Class: services/classes which provide guided meditations, mindfulness practices, and breathwork.
    • Yoga Classes: classes guiding participants in yoga sessions.
    • Acupuncture: acupuncture sessions provided to clients by a licensed acupuncture practitioner.
    • Massage Therapy: massage therapy sessions provided by licensed providers. Sessions are intended to lower stress and anxiety, manage pain, improve sleep and circulation.
    • Chiropractic Therapy: chiropractic therapy sessions, provided by a licensed chiropractic provider.
  • In addition to the above, CBP desires the Contractor to provide access to the following highly desirable services (The contractor shall include a description that details what each service will include in their PWS):
    • Art Therapy: licensed clinician led sessions to help patients interpret, express, and resolve their emotions and thoughts. Clients work with an art therapist to explore their emotions, understand conflicts or feelings that are causing them distress, and use art to help them find resolutions to those issues.
    • Music Therapy: music therapy sessions, led by a credentialed music therapy professional, which promotes rhythmic and melodic elements that can soothe the nervous system, regulate emotions, and promote relaxation responses in the body and mind.
    • Animal Therapy – Equine Therapy: an alternative therapeutic modality that incorporates the use of equine (horses) to assist clients that present with challenges to traditional therapeutic modalities.
    • Reiki: sessions provided by a trained practitioner performing the Japanese healing technique.
  • CBP is interested in other wellness services the contractor may recommend and provide. Please provide any additional services offered by the contractor and descriptions of each.
  • Services may be provided by the primary contractor directly or through referral networks.  Referred services to third party providers are the responsibility of the primary contractor to ensure provided services maintain quality standards as set by the quality assurance plan.  All service providers of holistic health services under this contract must have proper training and certification(s).
  • If the contractor supplied HHSC facilities are jointly used for non-CBP clientele, the supplying vendor must ensure that CBP personnel and their families have priority access to all space and services provided throughout all servicing locations.
• Objective 3 – Mobile Wellness Services
  • In order to reach as many CBP employees and eligible family members within the serviced locations as possible, the Contractor shall provide mobile services to reach remote locations.  It is expected that the Contractor will have a mobile capability to regularly reach CBP remote locations up to 150 miles away from the respective city center of each designated HHSC location.  The contractor shall provide as many of the minimum and highly desirable services listed above via a mobile wellness service capability.
• Objective 4 – Virtual Wellness Services
  • The Contractor shall include a list of services that can be offered and delivered to CBP employees and eligible family members via virtual tools. The contractor must explain the tools and methods that will be used to meet this objective.
• Objective 5 – Cultural Competency
  • Cultural competency specific to CBP is critical to this requirement.  CBP personnel who are reluctant to seek mental health services will be more likely to successfully engage with others who understand CBP’s mission, stressors, challenges, and operating environment.  An understanding of CBP personnel’s attitudes, beliefs, values, and daily challenges is essential for this requirement, especially in the areas of mental health and suicide prevention.  The contractor shall exhibit their cultural competency of CBP throughout their Communication Plan, Community Outreach Plan, and the Communication/Marketing Material deliverables.
• Objective 6 – Reporting
  • CBP has a goal of achieving the above objectives.  Provide data on all services provided, service successes, challenges, and gaps and ways to overcome the challenges and gaps in order to achieve more successful outcomes.  The contractor shall identify industry standards for measuring successful delivery of services and use these standards to establish performance targets which can be measured at least monthly to track success areas as well as areas for improvement.  In addition, the contractor shall provide program questionnaires to CBP employees using the services on a quarterly basis in order to assess their satisfaction and progress.  Reporting may be segmented (location (at least the state), uniformed/non-uniformed, management/staff, etc.) while ensuring privacy.  All reporting and metrics gathered shall be made available to CBP with client details removed to maintain the anonymity of CBP Personnel engaging in services.
• Objective 7 – Maintain Quality Control
  • The contractor shall maintain quality controls of the HHSC and all services provided.  Develop and present metrics for the program. Monitor and continually report on the quantifiable impacts of the wellness services for CBP employees and eligible family members.  Identify, at a minimum in the Quality Control Plan, the following:
    • Identify how your organization measures quality.
    • Identify the processes your organization uses to improve quality.
    • Identify how client feedback will be gathered and incorporated to improve quality.