Health and Energy Hardship

Stay Warm Stay Well – Warm Winter Campaign

This winter, health and community/social service professionals can refer community members into free financial support as a preventative health measure.

Due to the rising cost of living, people are struggling to keep on top of utility bills. Given the clear evidence showing that living in cold conditions worsens existing health conditions and causes new illness, this is extremely concerning.

There is no cost to this service for you or your consumers which is funded by the Victorian Government.

How does energy hardship impact our health?

With the rising cost of energy, more and more people within Victoria are living in homes that are too hot or too cold to avoid paying excessive energy bills. Some people are even living without electricity or gas as they feel the cost is unmanageable. Given the strong evidence to show the health implications of living in conditions with substandard temperatures, this is extremely concerning.  

Energy hardship is a public health issue and a social determinant of health that creates a vicious cycle of healthcare need. Health professionals need to be on the lookout for people who may be at risk as part of their screening processes and refer them into support to ensure the temperature in their home is not creating or exacerbating health issues.

Hover over the tabs below and click through to find the evidence and research

How can Health Professionals Help? 

Energy Assistance Program 

Free energy bill support is available for people who may be facing difficulties keeping their home at a safe temperature. 

Patients can be referred into the Victorian Government’s Energy Assistance Program delivered in partnership with Anglicare Victoria. 

The Energy Assistance Program can help low income households and those experiencing hardship manage their energy bills and keep their homes at a safe temperature by:  

• Extending payment deadlines or applying for hardship programs with the energy provider  

• Finding, comparing and switching to a better offer 

• Applying for grants such as the utility relief grant and concessions for eligible customers 

• Reducing bill costs (how to reduce energy consumption at home) 

• Linking people in with other services such as financial counselling or the Energy and Water Ombudsman  

• Understanding bills 

• Organising in-person bill support 

Your patients can call the number independently or you can refer them into the service by completing the enquiry form on the Anglicare Victoria web page. 

Questions to ask to identify if your patient is experiencing energy hardship 

As part of your routine screening processes, ask your patients about the temperature in their home.  Are their energy bills too high or is the patient avoiding heating or cooling their home due to energy costs? Have they accrued an energy debt or struggling to pay energy bills? Are they cutting back on other spending to pay their energy bills?  

Some of warning signs that energy hardship may be impacting your patient’s health include:  

• Households that are too cold may experience persistent respiratory problems.  

• Children may often be absent from school with colds, rashes, ear infections, conjunctivitis or asthma.  

• You may notice the householder wearing too much clothing in winter.  

• The ventilation points may be blocked, or you may see mold stains on walls or curtains. 

• You may find visual evidence that heating appliances are not in use, or the heating or cooling controls are absent or not working or switched off.  

Home Visits 

Health professionals making home visits can be on the look out for warning signs that the household may be struggling with their energy bills. If you notice their home temperature is too hot or too cold, ask them about their energy bills.  

Who is most at risk? 

• The elderly  

• People living with a disability 

• People from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds 

• People without access to a computer and/or the internet 

• Health conditions most likely to be exacerbated by energy hardship: 

• Multiple morbidities 

• Living with cancer 

• Long term conditions such as: 

• Respiratory conditions 

• Mental health conditions, depression or anxiety 

• Circulatory conditions 

• Cardiovascular diseases 

• Arthritis/inflammatory conditions 

• Communicable diseases 

• Obesity  

• General frailty  

A Safe Temperature 

The World Health Organisation recommends keeping homes at a temperature between 18 and 20 degrees during winter and 25 to 27 degrees in summer degrees to reduce health risks.  

Cold Homes Risks: 

• Below 16 degrees – diminished resistance to respiratory infections, bronchitis, pneumonia and colds/flu. 

• Below 12 degrees – blood thickens leading to poor circulation, higher blood pressure, stroke and heart attack 

• Below 9 degrees – deep body temperature falls which could lead to hypothermia and risk of accidents such as falls 

Sustainability Victoria and Environment Victoria have some information pages with practical tips on how to keep our homes warmer during the winter months.

Heat Related Risks: 

The Department of Health have published information for clinicians around the dangers of extreme heat. Extreme heat – information for clinicians 

• Everyone is at risk of heat related illness.  

• Those at greatest risk include older persons, infants and young children, those who have co-morbidities, cognitive impairment, limited social support, or poor thermal protection in their homes and outdoor workers. 

• Some medicines can increase the risk of heat-related illness or may be less effective or more toxic when stored at high temperatures. 

• Health professionals can help reduce heat-related illness by identifying at-risk people and implementing strategies to reduce risk. 

• Advance planning is likely to help reduce heat-related effects on patients, clients and staff. 

Energy Concessions 

Patients who hold an eligible concession card (Pensioner Concession Card, Health Care Card, Veterans’ Affairs Gold Card) are eligible for energy concessions to help them with the cost of their energy bills. These include a 17.5% discount on the cost of electricity bills and winter gas bills. 

Concessions are also available for concession card holding patients who have pre-approved conditions such as the Medical Cooling Concession and Life Support Concession.  

Medical Cooling Concession 

This concession provides an additional 17.5% discount on electricity bills between 1 November and 30 April for concession card holders who either themselves have an eligible medical condition that affects their body’s ability to self-regulate temperature or have a household member who has an eligible medical condition.  

Pre-approved conditions for the Medical Cooling Concession are: 

• Multiple Sclerosis 

• Lymphoedema 

• Parkinson’s disease 

• Fibromyalgia 

• Post-polio Syndrome/Poliomyelitis 

• Motor Neurone Disease 

For other conditions, the patient will need to complete an application form and submit it to the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing (DFFH) for assessment. 

Life Support Concession 

This concession provides an electricity discount for the cost of 1,880 kilowatt hours of electricity each year. Life support machines already approved for the Life Support Concession are: 

• Intermittent peritoneal dialysis machines (electricity) 

• Oxygen concentrators (electricity) 

• Haemodialysis machines (electricity and water). 

Applications for other machines must be approved by DFFH. 

How to apply  

Your patient will need to call their energy retailer or the Concessions Information line on 1800 658 521 (toll free), or in the case of life support the hospital supplying the life support machine, to request an application form. This needs to be completed and signed by you as their doctor, confirming their eligibility.  
 
Read more: Energy concessions – DFFH Services 

How to stay cool

The World Health Organisation offers some practical tips on keeping cool during heat waves. 

• Move to the coolest room in the home, especially at night. 

• If it is not possible to keep your home cool, spend 2-3 hours of the day in a cool place (such as an airconditioned public building). 

• Avoid going outside during the hottest time of the day. 

• Avoid strenuous physical activity if you can. If you must do strenuous activity, do it during the coolest part of the day, which is usually in the morning between 04:00 and 07:00. 

• Stay in the shade. 

• Do not leave children or animals in parked vehicles.  

Read more (https://www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/heatwaves-how-to-stay-cool)  

Want to learn more? 

Sign up to VCOSS’s webinar notification list to register for upcoming webinars on the links between energy and health.  

Read More: 

Victorian Government Energy Assistance Program 

Australia’s Guide to Environmentally Sustainable Homes 

World Health Organisation Heat and Health 

Department of Health: Planning for extreme heat and heatwaves

Energy concessions in Victoria