Nebraska program
A doctor’s note that holds off a utility shutoff
A clinician’s certificate can delay a utility shutoff that would put someone in serious health danger.
What it is
A clinician’s certificate can delay a utility shutoff that would put someone in serious health danger.
Medical danger can make a utility disconnection especially urgent. Nebraska allows a signed certificate to postpone a covered shutoff. It gives extra time but does not erase the bill.
Eligibility rules
- A licensed physician, physician assistant or advanced practice registered nurse must certify the immediate serious health danger.
- The law covers public and private retail utilities, except a municipal utility owned and operated by a village.
What you get
- At least 30 days of postponement for a qualifying disconnection.
- Protection can apply to gas, electricity or water.
What the help covers
- The postponement delays disconnection rather than paying or forgiving the overdue amount.
If you decide to apply
- Ask your child’s clinician whether losing the utility would create immediate serious health danger.
- If you choose this route, send the signed certificate to the utility within five days of receiving the notice, excluding weekends and holidays.
- Keep a copy and proof the utility received it.
The utility · Official page ↗
After you apply
- The certificate must be filed with the covered utility within five business days after the shutoff notice is received. The utility should confirm receipt and the hold end date; the minimum 30-day hold runs from filing, not from later approval.
Good to know
The utility must provide only one postponement per non-payment. A longer-term payment arrangement or energy assistance remains a separate issue.
Other details
- The Public Service Commission’s separate winter rule reaches only two gas companies and adds payment time rather than banning shutoffs.
- For a utility covered by this law, the medical certificate must reach the utility within five business days after the shutoff notice is received. A physician, physician assistant or advanced practice registered nurse must certify that disconnection would create an immediate and serious health danger because of an existing illness or disability. The hold lasts at least 30 days from filing, once for that nonpayment incident; it does not erase the bill. Village-owned municipal utilities are excluded. Black Hills Energy and NorthWestern Energy have a separate November 1–March 31 rule adding 30 days beyond the normal bill due date, not a blanket winter shutoff ban.
Official sources
“If we receive a shutoff notice, could a medical certificate protect our child? What deadline and limits apply, and could you help us arrange the certificate and discuss payment help?”
Why I’m asking: I want to understand how to keep essential utilities connected if our child would be at risk.
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
Get it signed and filed within five days, and keep proof.
Your social worker
A physician, physician assistant or advanced practice nurse signs it.
The care team
The clinician certifies the immediate serious health danger.
- Who decides
- The utility applies the statute.
- Ask the care team
- “We have a shutoff notice. Nebraska law lets you certify that losing power would put my child in immediate serious health danger. Can you sign it today?”
How to apply
First step: The day the notice arrives, ask the clinic to sign the certificate.
- Ask the oncology team to sign the certificate the day the notice arrives.
- File it with the utility within five days.
- Apply for energy assistance in the thirty days you have bought.
Official application / program page ↗
Where it starts: Get the certificate signed and file it with the utility within five days of the notice.
What to gather
- The shutoff notice
- The clinician’s signature
How long: File within five days; the postponement is at least thirty days.
Clock: File the medical certificate with the utility within five days of the notice, not counting weekends and holidays.
What a yes looks like
The utility confirms the disconnection is postponed.
What a no looks like, and the next move
If the utility is a village-owned one, this law does not reach it; ask about a payment plan instead.
Watch out
- Five days to file, not counting weekends and holidays.
- Only one postponement per non-payment is required.
- A utility owned and operated by a village is outside this law.
The numbers and the rules
The arcane layer, kept on purpose. Checked September 11, 2026.
What it is worth
A signed certificate filed within five days postpones the shutoff for at least thirty days.
- $5 — Days to file the certificate after the notice
- $30 — Minimum days the disconnection is postponed
- $1 — Postponements required per non-payment
Legal protection: At least thirty days before the service can be cut off
What it costs the family: None.
The eligibility facts, as published
- Other
- a certificate from a licensed physician, physician assistant or advanced practice registered nurse that disconnection would cause immediate serious health danger
- Residency
- Nebraska; a municipal utility owned and operated by a village is excepted
- Processing standard
- five days to file
Expect friction on: Five days to file, counted without weekends and holidays
The trap: Only one postponement per non-payment is required, so use the thirty days to get energy assistance or a payment plan in place.
Where I read this
- Nebraska Revised Statute 70-1605 — Nebraska Legislature, read September 10, 2026
- Nebraska Revised Statute 70-1606 — Nebraska Legislature, read September 10, 2026
- Helping Ease Winter Struggles: the Cold Weather Rule — Nebraska Public Service Commission, read September 10, 2026
- Life-Sustaining Equipment Program — Omaha Public Power District, read September 10, 2026