Supplier Diversity
At Mount Sinai Health System, we understand the importance of having a diverse supplier base that is reflective of our patients and community at large. Working with a group of diverse suppliers allows us to access new ideas that will bring continued value to our organization.
Mount Sinai Health System’s supplier diversity program focuses on Small, Minority, Women, Veteran, LGBTQ, and Disabled Business Enterprises (“Diverse Suppliers”) and the following guiding principles:
- Communicate the business case for supplier diversity with all stakeholders
- Ensure business opportunities for small and diverse businesses in our procurement process
- Engage small and diverse businesses through networking opportunities and informative events
- Monitor and track diversity spend within the organization
- Use our supplier diversity efforts to strengthen our communities
Definition, History, and Business Case for Supplier Diversity
To understand how we will fulfill our guiding principles while overcoming the general challenges within health systems of supporting supplier diversity programs, it is essential to understand our supplier diversity business case.
Clients (Patients)
Mount Sinai desires to support our diverse patient population. One way to accomplish this is by purchasing products and services from local diverse businesses that are led by owners mirroring our diverse patient population.
Competition
Mount Sinai seeks to maintain our status as a leader among health systems. Having a successful supplier diversity program will aid in this pursuit.
Compliance
Since Mount Sinai receives federal grants, bonds, or government contracts, we are mandated to support minority-, women-, and veteran-owned business enterprises.
Communities
Utilizing local diverse businesses creates a diverse ecosystem, as those establishments are the ones employing many of Mount Sinai’s patients.
Customization
Diverse suppliers are often innovative and flexible in providing solutions to health systems. A supplier diversity program will allow Mount Sinai to make use of the innovation spawned by those diverse partners.
Cost
A diverse supplier base creates additional competition that leads to lower pricing, further driving costs down for the Health System.
Commitment to Diversity in Suppliers
Mount Sinai Health System is committed to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion throughout our community, including those companies that supply us with the products and services that allow us to provide care to our patients. We believe our supplier base needs to reflect the relationships and richness of the neighborhoods we serve and the patients who entrust their care to us.
We will achieve this by intentionally partnering with organizations owned by Blacks, Latinos, and other minorities, and by women, veterans, and LGBTQ and disabled people, as well as with small businesses or those in historically underutilized business zones. We will ensure these suppliers are actively identified and included in Mount Sinai’s purchasing strategies and sourcing activities by setting intentional specific metrics, identifying and addressing gaps in areas such as spend level or within specific commodities, using these metrics across the organization to stay on course, and partnering with our group purchasing organization to support diversity.
Our commitment to supplier diversity is part of our overall diversity, equity, and inclusion strategy. By partnering with more diverse suppliers while providing groundbreaking and compassionate health care, we will strive to improve health outcomes and contribute to a more equitable environment for our community.
To learn more about our commitment to supplier diversity or to ask questions, please email supplierdiversity@mountsinai.org.
Kenneth L. Davis, MD
President and Chief Executive Officer
Mount Sinai Health System
Stephen T. Harvey
Executive Vice President
Chief Financial Officer
|Mount Sinai Health System
Gary C. Butts, MD
Executive Vice President
Chief of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Mount Sinai Health System
Dean for Diversity Programs, Policy, and Community Affairs
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
Updated 11/15/22
Supplier Diversity Classifications and Definitions
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Certification Requirement. MSHS will comply, with the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) for Historically Underutilized Business Zone Small Business (HUBZone), to be certified by the Small Business Administration (SBA) and listed in the System for Award Management (SAM) to qualify for categorization as HUBZone in Government Contracting in accordance with FAR 52.219-8.
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Disability-Owned Business Enterprise (DOBE). The DOBE certification is granted to businesses that are at least 51 percent owned, operated, controlled, and managed by a person with a disability. With this certification, disability-owned businesses have increased access to contracts offered by large corporations and market advantages over competitors. As a group that is considered to be ‘disadvantaged’ in the U.S., disability-owned businesses are often more attractive to large businesses involved in national, state, and local supply chains.
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Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE). Means a for-profit small business concern (1) that is at least 51 percent owned by one or more individuals who are both socially and economically disadvantaged or, in the case of a corporation, in which 51 percent of the stock is owned by one or more such individuals; and (2) whose management and daily business operations are controlled by one or more of the socially and economically disadvantaged individuals who own it.
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Diverse Businesses. Companies that are historically underrepresented and are classified as Minority Business Enterprises; Women Business Enterprises; Veteran Business Enterprises; Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer Enterprises; Historically Underutilized Business Zone (HUBZone) Small Business; and Disabled Business Enterprises.
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First-Tier Supplier (Tier 1). A supplier with which MSHS has a direct relationship.
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Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU). Institutions determined by the Secretary of Education to meet the requirements of 34 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Section 608.2. Must be a college or university established to educate students of African-American descent and not as a result of changing demographics.
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Historically Underutilized Business Zone (HUBZone) Small Business. Small Business concern, certified by the Small Business Administration, that appears on the List of Qualified HUBZone Small Business Concerns maintained by the Small Business Administration.
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Large. Any business concerns not categorized as “Small” in 13 CFR Section 121, Small Business Size Standards.
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Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer Enterprise (LGBTQ). A domestic concern which, including domestic and foreign divisions, subsidiaries, and affiliates, is at least 51 percent owned, controlled, and operated by one or more identified and certified lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer owners. Or, in the case of any publicly-owned business, not less than 51 percent of the stock is owned by one or more disabled individuals.
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Minority Business Enterprise (MBE). An MBE is a for-profit enterprise, regardless of size, physically located in the United States or its trust territories, which is owned, operated and controlled by minority group members. “Minority group members” are United States citizens who are African-Americans, Hispanics, Native Americans, Asian-Pacific Americans and Asian-Indian Americans. Ownership by minority individuals means the business is at least 51 percent owned by such individuals or, in the case of a publicly-owned business, at least 51 percent of the stock is owned by one or more such individuals. Furthermore, the management and daily business operations are controlled by those minority group members. “Controlled” means the primary power to make policy decisions, and “Operated” means active involvement in day-to-day management related to business performance. In the case of publicly-owned businesses, the racial minority group members must own at least 51 percent of the stock.
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MBE Classifications. Below is a summary of the types of minority-owned businesses.
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African Americans. U.S. citizens having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa.
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Asian-Indian Americans. U.S. citizens whose origins are in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
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Asian-Pacific Americans. U.S. citizens whose origins are from Japan, China, Taiwan, Korea, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, the Philippines, Samoa, Guam, the U.S. Trust Territories of the Pacific or the Northern Marianas.
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Hispanics. U.S. citizens of Hispanic heritage from any of the Spanish-speaking areas of Latin America or the following regions: Mexico, Central America, South America and the Caribbean basin.
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Native Americans. Persons who are American Indian, Eskimo, Aleut or Native Hawaiian, and regarded as such by the community of which the person claims to be a part. Native Americans must be documented members of a North American tribe, band or otherwise organized group of native people who are indigenous to the United States.
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Minority Institutions (MIs). Institutions meeting the requirements of 34 CFR Section 607.2. This also includes any Non-Profit research institution that was an integral part of the HBCU before November 14, 1986.
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Non-Profit. Any organization not conducted or maintained for the purpose of making a profit. Included in this category are sheltered workshops, universities, colleges, and local, state, and federal governments.
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The North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS). The standard used by Federal statistical agencies in classifying business establishments for the purpose of collecting, analyzing, and publishing statistical data related to the U.S. business economy. Replaces the Suppliers Industrial Classification for determining size standards in performance of government contracts. Use effective October 1, 2000.
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Operated. Actively involved in day-to-day management. Publicly owned businesses, joint stock associations, and business trusts are exempt from this definition.
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Second-Tier Supplier (Tier 2). A supplier that has a direct relationship with an MSHS First-Tier Supplier, but is considered a Subcontractor to the First-Tier supplier.
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Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB). A small, domestic concern which, including domestic and foreign divisions, subsidiaries, and affiliates, is at least 51 percent owned, controlled, and Operated by one or more Service-Disabled Veterans. Or, in the case of any publicly-owned business, not less than 51 percent of the stock is owned by one or more service-disabled veterans.
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Small Business (SB). A domestic firm, including its affiliates, that is independently owned and Operated, is not dominant in its field, and has been categorized by the United States Small Business Administration as “Small” in accordance with 13 CFR Part 121, Small Business Size Standards.
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Small Business Subcontracting Plan. An agreement entered into by a prime contractor or subcontractor required by Federal Acquisition Regulation clause 52.219-8 entitled “Utilization of Small Business Concerns”; Federal Acquisition Regulation clause 52.219-9 entitled “Small Business Subcontracting Plan,” and the clause at Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) 252-219-1003 Small Business and Small Disadvantaged Business Subcontracting Plan which are applicable to all purchase orders and Subcontracts issued in support of DoD contracts for materials, supplies or services, other than personal in nature.
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Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB). A small, domestic concern which, including domestic and foreign divisions, subsidiaries, and affiliates, is at least 51 percent owned by one or more Socially and Economically Disadvantaged Individuals; or in the case of a publicly-owned business, at least 51 percent of the stock is owned by one or more of such individuals, and whose management and daily business operations are controlled by one or more such individuals.
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Socially and Economically Disadvantaged Individuals. Black Americans who are U.S. citizens; Hispanic Americans who are U.S. citizens and whose ancestry and culture are rooted in South America, Central America, Mexico, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Spain or Portugal; Native Americans that are American Indians, Eskimos, Aleuts or Native Hawaiians; Asian Pacific Americans who are U.S. citizens whose origins are from Japan, China, The Philippines, Vietnam, Korea, Samoa, Guam, U.S. Trust Territory or the Pacific Islands, Northern Mariana Islands, Laos, Cambodia, or Taiwan; Subcontinent Asian Americans (formerly Asian Indian Americans) who are U.S. citizens whose origins are from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, or Sri-Lanka; whose net worth, excluding primary resident, does not exceed $750,000 and any other individual/concern currently certified for participation in the Section 8 (a) Small Business Administration Program.
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Subcontract. Any agreement entered into by a prime contractor or subcontractor for materials, supplies or services; other than personal in nature, required to support the performance of a U.S. Government contract.
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Supplier Diversity. A proactive business process that seeks to provide suppliers equal access to purchasing opportunities. It promotes supplier participation reflective of the diverse business community and encourages economic development.
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Supplier Diversity Business Lead (SDBL). The individual appointed by Supply Chain to provide overall guidance, training, leadership and support of the MSHS’s supplier diversity efforts and compliance with socioeconomic program requirements in government contracting.
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Veteran Business Enterprise (VBE). A small, domestic concern which, including domestic and Foreign divisions, subsidiaries, and affiliates, is at least 51 percent owned, controlled, and Operated by one or more veterans. Or, in the case of publicly-owned business, not less than 51 percent of the stock owned by one or more veterans.
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Veteran-Owned Small Business (VOSB). Means a small business that: (i) is at least 51% unconditionally owned by one or more veterans (as defined at 38 U.S.C. 101(2)); or in the case of any publicly owned business, at least 51% of the stock of which is unconditionally owned by one or more veterans; and (ii) whose management and daily business operations are controlled by one or more veterans.
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Women Business Enterprise (WBE). A women-owned business is at least 51 percent or more owned by a woman (or women), who is a U.S. citizen, and who controls the firm by exercising the power to make policy decisions and operates the business by being actively involved in day-to-day management.
Acceptable Diversity Certifications
MSHS encourages Diverse Suppliers to obtain independent third-party certification. Certification is the process by which organizations verify that businesses meet the criteria of ownership, control, and management to qualify as a Small, Minority, Women, Veteran, LGBTQ, and/or Disabled Individual-Owned Business Enterprise. Our suggested certification agencies are as follows:
Vendormate
Mount Sinai Health System requires that all suppliers doing business with our organization register their company information in the Vendormate system. Appropriately managing our supplier relationships is an essential part of providing world-class care to our patients and our community.
All vendor companies that have a medical, pharmaceutical, device, or other clinically related representative who visits any MSHS facility are required to have their representative register through the "vendor representatives" portal. Vendor representatives will be required to sign in and obtain a badge at the time of your visit.
We want to ensure that our vendor/supplier relationships remain productive and mutually beneficial. Thank you in advance for your support and adherence to our vendor program. If you have any questions, please contact Vendormate at 888-476-0377 or online if you have any questions.
Quick Links
Vendor Policy – Policy on Interactions with Vendors and Other Commercial Entities
Vendor Credentialing Service