Health and Energy Security
Keeping life-saving services powered for medically vulnerable people.
For people who depend on electricity to power medical equipment or to refrigerate temperature-sensitive medications, even short power outages can be a matter of life or death.
Clean Energy Group works at the intersection of equity, energy security, and public health to advance clean, resilient power systems - solar paired with battery storage (solar+storage). Resilient power systems can keep critical, electricity-dependent health care services running and provide electricity to households or community spaces, ensuring medically vulnerable individuals have access to outlets, refrigeration, and heating and cooling systems during an emergency. The project brings together a diverse coalition of health and energy leaders, academics, and community organizations to advocate for the role of resilient power in the health sector and prevent the avoidable deaths and public health crises caused by power outages.
Who We Serve
Over 2.3 million people in the United States rely on electricity to power critical medical equipment in their homes. This medically vulnerable population is at risk of being left without access to critical health care equipment in the event of a power outage. Clean Energy Group provides information and technical assistance to health care providers, such as community health clinics, federally qualified health centers, senior care facilities, and other organizations serving medically vulnerable populations, so that they are better able to assess and access benefits of solar and battery storage to mitigate health risks by powering essential services throughout an outage.
Project Impact
Partnered with the Florida Association of Community Health Centers (FACHC), Direct Relief, and Powered for Patients to survey backup power capabilities at Florida’s 800+ community health centers.
Supported disaster relief and recovery efforts in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria with Direct Relief to install resilient solar+storage systems at eight community health clinics across the island.
Collaborated with the Meridian Institute to publish the first-ever report examining the role of solar and battery storage in mitigating the risks associated with power outages for individuals reliant on electricity for in-home medical and mobility equipment, Home Health Care in the Dark.
Advanced academic research (Futures, Epidemiology) on the socioeconomic and health impacts of power outages on medically vulnerable populations and how resilient power could help mitigate impacts.
Project Partners
Featured Publications
Meet Our Team
Photo Credits, top to bottom: Bigstock; Jill Carlson/Flickr; iStock.