FPL Medically Essential Service Application (MESP): Filing and Renewal

To enroll in FPL’s Medically Essential Service program, you complete Part A of the application with your account and patient information, have a Florida-licensed physician complete Part B certifying that someone at your address depends on electric-powered medical equipment to avoid death or immediate hospitalization, and submit the finished form to Florida Power & Light online, by email, by fax, or by mail. The FPL Medically Essential Service application does not guarantee uninterrupted power, but it does trigger extra disconnection notice and referrals to bill-assistance programs.¹

Who Qualifies Before You Start

Any FPL residential customer can apply if a permanent resident at the service address depends on electric-powered medical equipment that runs continuously or as needed to avoid death or immediate hospitalization.² The patient does not have to be the account holder.¹

Equipment used for general comfort or convenience does not meet the standard. Oxygen concentrators, home ventilators, and kidney dialysis machines are common examples of qualifying devices, but any physician-specified electric-powered equipment that meets the statutory threshold can count.³

What You Fill In (Part A)

You can download a printable PDF from FPL’s website or start the application through the online portal at fpl.com.⁴

Part A asks for your FPL account number, the account holder’s name, the service address where the equipment is used, and the name of the patient who depends on it. You also describe the specific medical equipment: include the device name and what it does. List each device separately if the patient uses more than one. Precise descriptions here reduce follow-up questions from FPL.⁴

What Your Doctor Fills In (Part B)

A physician licensed in Florida under Chapter 458 (M.D.) or Chapter 459 (D.O.) must complete Part B.² Nurse practitioners and physician assistants are not authorized to sign this section.¹

The physician certifies that the patient is under their care, has been seen or consulted within the past 12 months, and depends on the specified equipment to avoid death or immediate hospitalization. The doctor must explain in both medical and plain-language terms why the electric service is medically essential. Part B also requires the physician’s printed name, Florida license number, practice address, signature, and the date of certification.⁴

False certification is a licensure violation under Florida law. If your physician has questions about what qualifies, point them to the statutory definition in Section 366.15.²

How to Submit the Completed Form

Once both parts are filled out, you have four ways to send the form to FPL:

Online, through the Medically Essential Service portal on fpl.com.⁵
By email to FPL-MESP@fpl.com.¹
By fax to 305-552-4955.³
By mail to FPL, Attention Medically Essential Service Program CSF/GO, PO Box 029100, Miami, FL 33102-9100.¹

Email and fax generally reach the processing team faster than postal mail. Keep a copy of the completed form. You will need the physician’s certificate information again at renewal.

What Enrollment Actually Gets You

FPL reviews the form to confirm the physician’s licensure and that the equipment described meets the statutory definition. The statute requires the utility to certify any customer who completes the application requirements.² FPL does not publish a specific turnaround time, so follow up with customer service if you have not heard back within a couple of weeks.

Certification flags your account. That flag brings special advance notice before any scheduled disconnection for non-payment and referrals to social-service agencies that help with utility bills.¹ FPL is also prohibited from requiring an additional deposit to continue or restore your medically essential service. Under the statute, FPL must also notify enrolled customers of any scheduled service interruptions for maintenance so you have time to activate a backup plan.²

What enrollment does not do is equally important. Medically essential status does not guarantee uninterrupted electricity and does not move you to the front of the line after a hurricane or other unplanned outage. FPL restores power based on infrastructure priorities such as hospitals, water treatment facilities, and main feeder lines, not on individual account flags. You are responsible for maintaining your own backup equipment and power supply, whether that is a battery backup for the device, a portable generator, or arrangements to relocate during extended outages.¹

Renewing Every 12 Months

The designation does not auto-renew. You must reapply every 12 months with a fresh physician’s certificate.¹ Florida law requires FPL to mail recertification materials at least 30 days before your current certification expires. You then have 30 days after the expiration date to return the completed forms. If FPL does not receive them in that window, it can remove the medically essential designation from your account.²

Mark your calendar about a month before the anniversary of your original enrollment so you can schedule a physician visit and have Part B signed before the deadline. Existing customers can reapply through FPL’s online portal, which saves time over mailing a paper form.⁵

1
Florida Power & Light. Medically Essential Service
2
The Florida Legislature. Florida Code 366.15 – Medically Essential Electric Public Utility Service
3
Florida Power & Light. Medically Essential Service
4
Florida Power & Light Company. FPL Medically Essential Service Form
5
FPL. MESP