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

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Kentucky program

A medical note to delay a utility shutoff

A medical certificate can postpone a regulated utility’s shutoff when losing service would worsen an illness.

What it is

A medical certificate can postpone a regulated utility’s shutoff when losing service would worsen an illness.

A doctor, registered nurse or public health officer can write the certificate. The rule covers utilities supervised by Kentucky’s Public Service Commission. It buys time but does not erase the bill.

Eligibility rules
  • Written certification that termination would aggravate a debilitating illness or infirmity of a resident.
  • The Public Service Commission rule applies to utilities within its jurisdiction. A municipal system or other supplier may have separate local or contractual rules.
  • You must live in Kentucky.
What you get
  • A 30-day delay of a qualifying utility shutoff.
Amounts and limits
  • Days the termination is delayed: 30 days.
If you decide to apply
  1. If a shutoff notice arrives, ask the oncology team whether it can write the medical certificate.
  2. Give the certificate to the utility before the termination date and keep its reply.

Medical certificate: 800-772-4636 · Official page ↗

If you decide to apply
  • The decision comes from the utility company.
Good to know

This PSC rule covers regulated utilities, including regulated electric cooperatives. A city-owned system or other supplier confirms any separate local or contractual protection.

Other details
  • The first qualifying medical certificate postpones the termination date for 30 days; it does not erase arrears or guarantee reconnection. A consecutive extension can require an agreed partial-payment arrangement. Separate winter and gas/electric payment-plan rules have different conditions, and the utility must confirm that this PSC rule covers its service.
Official sources
Ask your social worker

“If we face a shutoff, what would a medical certificate help with, what are its limits, and could you help us request one?”

Why I’m asking: I want to understand how to protect essential service if a utility bill becomes a problem.

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

Ask for the note and deliver it before the termination date.

Your social worker

A doctor, registered nurse or public health officer writes the certificate.

The care team

The clinic nurse can usually sign this without a doctor's appointment.

Who decides
The utility company applies the rule.
Ask the care team
“We have a shutoff notice and my child is on chemotherapy at home. Can you write the certificate saying losing the power would make the illness worse?”

How to apply

First step: Ask the clinic nurse for the written certificate the day a notice arrives, and deliver it to the company before the termination date.

  1. Ask the clinic nurse for the certificate the day the notice arrives.
  2. Deliver it to the company in writing and keep the proof.
  3. If a second 30 days is needed, offer a partial payment plan when you ask.

Official application / program page ↗

Where it starts: Ask the oncology team for a written certificate and give it to the company before the termination date.

What to gather

  • The shutoff notice with its date
  • The account number
  • The clinician's written certificate

How long: The delay is 30 days from the termination date.

What a yes looks like

A written confirmation from the company of the new date.

What a no looks like, and the next move

Ask whether the company is regulated by the Public Service Commission; if it is city-owned, ask the city for its own rule.

Watch out

  • City-owned electric and gas utilities sit outside the rule. Rural electric cooperatives are inside it.
  • A second 30 days can be refused unless you agree a partial payment plan, so offer one when you ask.

The numbers and the rules

The arcane layer, kept on purpose. Checked September 11, 2026.

What it is worth

Thirty more days before the service goes off, on a written note from a doctor, a registered nurse or a public health officer.

  • $30 — Days the termination is delayed

Legal protection: Service cannot be terminated for 30 days beyond the termination date once the certificate is given · A doctor, a registered nurse or a public health officer can sign

What it costs the family: Nothing.

The eligibility facts, as published

Medical
written certification that termination would aggravate a debilitating illness or infirmity of a resident
Utility
companies under Public Service Commission supervision, which includes rural electric cooperatives; city-owned utilities are outside the definition
Residency
Kentucky

The trap: This binds companies the Public Service Commission regulates. Rural electric cooperatives are inside that supervision; city-owned electric and gas utilities are outside the definition, so if the bill comes from the city, ask the city what its own rule is.

Where I read this

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