Some serious medical conditions depend on electrically-powered medical devices daily. If you’re a Texas resident who depends on electricity to power your medical equipment, we have very valuable information to share with you.
Please review the following important information from Peso Power, the most reliable electricity provider in Texas, regarding Critical Care and Chronic Conditions for our residential customers.
Who can apply as a Critical Care or Chronic Condition customer?
*Important: Please Read—If you are registered with your TDU as Critical Care or Chronic Condition, you can’t sign up with any Retail Energy Provider for prepaid electricity services. Instead, you must choose a traditional post-paid plan that works for you.
Essentially, when customers sign up for an electricity service, they have the ability to purchase their electricity from retail electric providers, known as (REPs). Public utilities, also referred to as transmission and distribution utilities (TDUs), deliver the electricity to critically or chronically ill customers’ homes. These TDUs then maintain electrical equipment such as wires, poles, and transformers.
Texas customers who have been diagnosed with serious medical conditions can apply, with their TDU, as either Chronic Condition Residential status or Critical Care Residential status. Please note that there are distinct differences between these two statuses.
Who may qualify as a Chronic Condition Customer?
Those who qualify as Chronic Condition Residential Customers include residential electricity customers with a permanent resident of their home who has been diagnosed by a physician as being dependent upon an electrical-powered medical device to prevent the impairment of a major life function through a significant deterioration or exacerbation of the person’s medical condition.
If that serious medical condition is diagnosed or re-diagnosed by a physician as a life-long condition, the designation is effective under this section until the person with the medical condition either:
- no longer resides at the home, or one year (whichever is the shorter length of time)
- Otherwise, the designation or re-designation is effective for 90 days from implementation
Who may qualify as a Critical Care Customer?
Critical Care Residential Customers are residential electricity customers who have a permanent resident of their home who has been diagnosed by a physician as being dependent upon an electrical-powered medical device to sustain life.
- The designation or re-designation under this section is effective for two years.
How do I apply for either Critical Care Residential Status OR Chronic Condition Residential Status?
To apply, there are certain steps that must be taken.
- In order to be considered for designation as Chronic Condition Residential status or Critical Care Residential status, an application for designation must be submitted by or on behalf of the customer to the TDU by a physician.
