Written by a parent, not a doctor. Nothing here is medical advice.

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Illinois program

A temporary hold on utility shutoff (Illinois medical certification)

A doctor’s certificate can protect a seriously ill person’s home from a regulated utility shutoff for 60 days.

What it is

A doctor’s certificate can protect a seriously ill person’s home from a regulated utility shutoff for 60 days.

A medical certificate can give you time to work through a utility bill when serious illness is involved. The rule applies to utilities regulated by the Illinois Commerce Commission. It does not erase the debt.

Eligibility rules
  • A licensed physician or local board of health must certify that stopping service would create or worsen a medical emergency or serious illness for someone who lives in the home. A diagnosis alone does not establish that connection.
  • The rule applies to ICC-regulated utilities. Another certificate is allowed after 12 months or once the account is current.
  • The rule covers ICC-regulated residential electric, gas, water and sewer service. Municipal utilities and cooperatives outside that jurisdiction require a separate policy check.
What you get
  • A 60-day protection against disconnection after a valid certificate.
What the help includes
  • This is a temporary disconnection protection, not a payment toward the balance. Energy assistance and a payment arrangement are separate.
If you decide to apply
  1. Ask the oncology clinic whether the medical-certification rule fits your household’s situation.
  2. Have the utility account number and shutoff notice ready for the doctor or local board of health.
  3. Send the certificate to the utility and ask for confirmation that it was received.

Your utility and the Illinois Commerce Commission consumer office · Official page ↗

What happens next
  • A telephone certification must be followed in writing within seven days. Without that written follow-up the protection lapses.
  • The utility can confirm the protection’s end date. ICC consumer assistance handles disputes about regulated service.
  • For reconnection, certification must reach the utility within 14 days after shutoff. When the rule is met, restoration is due within one day.
Good to know

The certificate protects service temporarily but does not cancel the bill. Required installments begin during the protection, not only after the 60 days end.

Other details
  • During the hold you start paying the old balance in monthly instalments: a twelfth a month if power was never cut, or a quarter up front and the rest over nine months if it was. New bills stay due.
Official sources
Ask your social worker

“Would a medical certificate protect our service if shutoff is threatened? What happens when the hold ends, and could you help us request it and discuss bill assistance?”

Why I’m asking: I want to understand how to keep essential utilities running during treatment if a shutoff notice arrives.

More background and detailed requirements
Additional program information and published rules

Who does what

The three parts, side by side. The agency decides; nobody on this page does.

You

Send the certificate to the utility in writing and keep proof; apply for energy help during the 60 days.

Your social worker

The social worker gets the doctor's certification the same day.

The care team

The doctor signs the medical certification.

Who decides
The utility must honor a valid certificate under Illinois Commerce Commission rules.
Ask the care team
“We have a utility shutoff notice. Can you sign the Illinois medical certification today so the utility must hold the disconnection for 60 days?”

How to apply

First step: The day a notice arrives, ask the oncology clinic to sign the medical certification and send it to the utility in writing.

  1. Ask the doctor to certify the serious illness the day a notice arrives; send it to the utility in writing within 7 days.
  2. Apply for LIHEAP and a payment plan during the 60 days.

Official application / program page ↗

Where it starts: Ask the oncology clinic for the certification and send it to the utility; call the utility to confirm receipt. ICC consumer help for disputes.

What to gather

  • The shutoff notice
  • The doctor's certification
  • Proof the utility received it

How long: The certificate supports a 60-day hold. A telephone certification needs writing within 7 days. If certified within 14 days after disconnection, service must be restored within one day. This does not suspend bills or payment-plan obligations.

What a yes looks like

The utility confirms the hold in writing.

What a no looks like, and the next move

File a complaint with the Illinois Commerce Commission consumer office.

Watch out

  • A municipal electric system or a co-op is outside the rule; ask for its own hardship policy.
  • The hold is 60 days and a second certificate needs 12 months or a current balance: use the time.
  • A phone certification lapses unless the written one follows within 7 days.

The numbers and the rules

The arcane layer, kept on purpose. Checked September 8, 2026.

What it is worth

No disconnection for 60 days after a doctor's or local board of health certification; written follow-up within 7 days of a phone certification; another certificate after 12 months or once the account is current.

  • $60 — Days of protection after certification
  • $7 — Days to follow a phone certification in writing
  • $12 — Months before another certificate is allowed (unless the account is current)

Legal protection: No disconnection for 60 days after certification by a licensed physician or a local board of health · Binds Commission-regulated utilities; municipal electric systems and electric cooperatives are outside the rule

What it costs the family: None.

The eligibility facts, as published

Certifier
licensed physician or local board of health
Duration days
60
Written within days
7
Renewal
another certificate after 12 months, or when the account is current
Scope
ICC-regulated residential electric, gas, water and sewer service; municipal utilities and cooperatives outside ICC jurisdiction do not follow this rule.

Expect friction on: Utility must receive the certificate; keep proof

The trap: The certificate holds the shutoff; it does not erase the bill. Use the 60 days to apply for LIHEAP and set a payment plan.

Where I read this

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