DPU adopts regulatory changes promoting stable utility service for seriously and chronically ill consumers

MLP | Boston has long advocated for extra utility shut-off protection for sick, low-income patients, whose health needs require regular, uninterrupted utility service.  Recently, MLP | Boston shared its policy prescriptions with the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities (DPU) in the hope that these protections might be enhanced.  In response, the DPU announced a series of regulatory changes that were stunning in their responsiveness to the needs of economically and medically vulnerable utility consumers. Among other things, the DPU:

• Expanded the pool of health care professionals who can certify that a household member has a serious or chronic illness – an acknowledgment that in today’s complex health care delivery landscape, one is as likely to be treated by a nurse practitioner as by a physician; and

• Decreased the regularity of medical re-certifications required to maintain eligibility for shut-off protection – an acknowledgement that requiring a patient with terminal cancer, for example, to re-certify this diagnosis every 30 days (as opposed to every 3-6 months) was both impractical and inhumane.

MLP | Boston salutes the DPU for its far-sighted ruling.  The lifting of these bureaucratic barriers will mean that more of our neighbors will stay warm and healthy in the coming months – truly good news!