A person with special medical needs may depend on electricity for life-sustaining equipment. Henderson Municipal Power & Light (HMP&L) addresses the needs of these customers by establishment of a Critical Needs Program. The Program is for residential customers whose electric service is medically essential, as certified by a physician (i.e. the customer is dependent on electric-powered equipment that must be operated continuously or as required by a physician to avoid loss of life or serious medical complications requiring immediate hospitalization).
The Program does not guarantee uninterrupted service or exempt customers from payment of their electrical bills. The purpose of this Program is to collect contact information for customers who use electric power to operate life-sustaining equipment so HMP&L can attempt to provide them with reasonable prior notice of scheduled interruptions in electrical service. Hopefully, having this information will allow customers the opportunity to activate their Preparedness Plan. We strongly urge customers to develop their own Preparedness Plan that outlines actions you will take, such as having backup equipment and/or power supply, and contacts you will make for assistance during a period of interruption of electrical service.
Of course, please realize that we cannot guarantee that we will be able to reach you – phone lines may be down, you may not be at home, etc. – but we will make a reasonable effort to contact you or call the back-up number you provide. If you use a cordless telephone, please remember that type of phone will not work during a power outage and cell phones often have the same problem.
In the event of emergency power failures due to natural causes or unforeseen system problems, the Critical Needs Program cannot provide prior notification. Please be aware that the Program does not establish priorities for restoration of electric services from an interruption of service and we cannot tell you when your power will be turned back on, especially during major storm events or city-wide power outages, so pre-planning for emergencies is essential.
In the links below you will find an application for the Program and a form to be completed by your physician verifying the equipment is medically essential. Once we have received the completed forms, you will be notified whether or not you are eligible for the Program. In the event your request is approved by HMP&L, you will be placed in the Critical Needs Program. This approval is valid for a period of twenty-four (24) months from the date of approval. In order to continue your participation in the Program, you must reapply and provide HMP&L with the required documentation at the end of that period. For the Program to be effective, it is important for you to notify HMP&L of any changes to your contact information or if the life-sustaining equipment is no longer required.
