Can my utility shut off my power if I am on oxygen?
Not usually, but only if you file the paperwork: nearly every state restricts winter disconnection, and medical-certification protections are close to universal — but the details are set state by state, so check yours. The protection normally starts only after your doctor signs a medical certificate and the utility has it on file, and it usually delays disconnection and requires a payment plan rather than erasing what you owe.
What this means
- This is often called medical certification, a serious illness protection, or a life support customer designation.
- The protection is usually a delay of 30 to 90 days, renewable, not a permanent exemption. You still owe the bill.
- Many states have a separate winter or summer moratorium that limits shut-offs for older adults during extreme weather.
- The utility will not know about your medical equipment unless you tell them.
What to do first
- Call your utility today, ask for the medical certification form, and ask for a hold on the account while it is being processed.
- Have your doctor's office complete and return the form, and confirm by phone that the utility received it.
- Ask at the same time for a payment plan or budget billing, and for the utility's own hardship fund.
- Apply for LIHEAP crisis assistance through your state, and call your state utility commission if the utility refuses to follow its own rules.
LIHEAP Home Energy Assistance
Helps pay heating and cooling bills, and can stop a shut-off in an emergency.
Utility Hardship Funds and Senior Shut-Off Protections
Medical baseline rates, winter shut-off protection, hardship grants, and budget billing your utility rarely mentions.
What you'll need
- Your utility bill
- Proof of income for the last 30 days for everyone in the home
- Proof of income for hardship grants
- A medical certificate signed by your doctor for medical protections
- Most recent heating and electric bills
- Photo identification
- Shut-off notice if you have one
- Social Security numbers for the household
Deadlines and timing
- Medical certificates expire. Put the renewal date on your calendar.
- A certificate delays the shut-off, it does not erase the balance, so use the delay to set up a payment plan.
- Never let a shut-off notice sit unopened. The protections almost always require you to act before the disconnect date.
Where to go
- LIHEAP Home Energy Assistance: https://acf.gov/ocs/map/liheap-map-state-and-territory-contact-listing
- Utility Hardship Funds and Senior Shut-Off Protections: https://www.naruc.org/about-naruc/our-mission/regulatory-commissions/
Reviewed by Jason Burns, Editorial Steward · Last verified August 25, 2026
Sources
- Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program · Administration for Children and Families
- National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners · NARUC
Need help today?
- Shut-off notice in hand: call the number on the bill and ask for a medical hold and a payment plan, then call 211.
- No food today: call 211 or the Eldercare Locator at 1-800-677-1116 for a same-week food bank or meal.
- In danger: call 911, or reach Adult Protective Services through the Eldercare Locator at 1-800-677-1116.
Every program on this site is free to apply for. Anyone who asks you to pay to apply, or to “unlock” a government benefit, is a scam — hang up and call Senior Medicare Patrol or 211.
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