If someone in your home depends on powered medical equipment

When's the Power Back? editorial · reviewed 2026-07-08 · sources linked inline and listed below

Register with your utility now

Most utilities maintain a medical/special-needs registry — registered households may get advance notice of planned outages and are flagged in restoration planning. Call the number on your bill and ask for the medical-necessity or life-support registry. (Registration does not guarantee priority restoration — have a backup plan regardless.)

Know the federal resources

The HHS emPOWER program exists specifically for electricity-dependent medical equipment users; its resources help you and local emergency managers plan. Medicare users can be identified to responders in an emergency through it.

Plan the power itself

Ask the device's supplier about battery backup runtime and spares — oxygen concentrators, CPAP/BiPAP, home dialysis, and power wheelchairs all have documented options. If a generator is part of the plan, read our generator-safety guide first — CO kills the people generators were meant to protect.

During an outage

Check your area's restoration outlook early — the decision to relocate (family, a facility, a shelter with power) is easier made at hour one than hour six. If a device is failing and there's no immediate option, call 911; that is exactly what emergency services are for, per Ready.gov guidance.

This page is planning info, not medical advice

Care decisions belong with your clinician and the device manufacturer. Our contribution is the outage side: live status, honest restoration estimates, and free alerts for your address.

Sources

During an actual outage: check your address on the live map — current counts for your area, the utility's posted restoration time, and an independent estimate with a public accuracy record. Free alerts when your power's back.