As (almost) all Belgian hospitals are subject to the public procurement regime in Belgium, hospitals have to use tender procedures to procure their medical devices. This presentation will give an introduction into public procurement procedures in Belgium focused on the Life Sciences sector. It will touch upon the applicable legislation and principles, the different actors, the key features of tendering and an overview of the different procedures possible. This presentation will include a tender documents walkthrough by which the different documents in the tendering process are analysed and discussed with practical recommendations. It will address key elements such as technical minimum requirements, selection criteria, awarding criteria, offer deadlines, e-Procurement, ESPD and much more. The presentation will be followed by a Q&A.

This presentation will focus on the current practical problems in tender procedures for medical devices, as well as on recent developments and case law concerning, amongst others, technical minimum requirements, selection criteria and awarding criteria. In particular, this presentation will address items such as FAMHP Circular 646 and anti-gift rules, samples, value-based procurement, improvement proposals, commercial secrecy, price revision and much more. It will also touch upon what to do after awarding, where to look in the awarding report and which options are available to challenge awarding decisions.