NES Announces Enhancements To Referral Program for Those With Medical Needs

Nashville Electric Service (NES) has announced enhancements to grow its Critical Referral Program for customers who must have electricity to power medical devices.

The NES Critical Referral Program is for residents who require electrically powered life-sustaining medical devices on a continual basis. Critical Referral customers receive priority status during individual power outages. However, during some severe storms with widespread outages, system-wide repairs must be completed before individual outages can be addressed.

“Winter Storm Fern made it clear that some of our most vulnerable residents need even stronger support when power is out,” said Teresa Broyles-Aplin, NES president and CEO. “These enhancements are an important step in ensuring that every customer can count on us when it matters most.”

Customers who want to register for the Critical Referral Program can apply by going to nespower.com/critical-referral-program or call NES at (615) 736-6900.

To apply online:

1. A customer must complete and submit the Critical Referral Form at the bottom of the web page.
2. Then the customer’s physician must submit the Critical Referral Verification Letter, which can be downloaded from the same web page.
3. Once both of those steps are completed and the application is approved, NES will contact the customer to verify information, answer questions and onboard them into the program.

Examples of life-sustaining medical devices include (but are not limited to):

• Life support equipment oxygen concentration
• Respirators
• Suction machines
• Feeding pumps
• Dialysis
• LVAD or external heart pumps

When a resident is entered and changes address within the NES service area, the enrollment in the program will follow the resident to the new address. The customer will remain in the program for two years, then a physician must resubmit the verification letter. It is important for residents who need life-sustaining equipment to also have a backup plan in place in the event of an extended outage.

Other steps NES has taken to help customers after the ice storm include:

• NES has suspended all service disconnections and late fees through June. For customers who received bills before the suspension of disconnections and late fees was instituted, all late fees have been reversed for those beginning January 29.
• The utility is introducing an unprecedented level of flexibility by offering unlimited payment arrangements for all customers through December 2026.

In the aftermath of Winter Storm Fern, NES leadership committed to immediately improving the following four areas:

1. Formalizing emergency management leadership to create a more structured response to a crisis.
2. Identifying and resolving all existing gaps in how the utility communicates with its customers during a storm.
3. Evaluating and refining specific methodologies used in determining estimated times of restoration for customers.
4. Assessing how the utility can increase the undergrounding of powerlines while improving the maintenance of existing above-ground lines.

NES has formed four task forces to identify and develop systems to address each of these four areas and will continually update the public on any actions implemented to improve its response to future storms.

In addition, following Winter Storm Fern, the NES Power Board has approved to conduct an independent, after-action review to be completed in 90 days. This evaluation is designed to capture critical lessons from the recent storm while details are still clear, ensuring the utility is fully prepared before the spring and summer storm seasons.