a) Certificate of
Illness
1) A Telephone company shall postpone
discontinuance of telephone service to a residential customer for thirty (30) days
from the date of certification by a licensed physician that discontinuance of
service will aggravate an existing medical emergency or create a medical emergency
for the customer or a permanent resident in the customer's household.
2) Initial certification shall prohibit
discontinuance of service for thirty (30) days. Certification may be renewed by the
customer for one additional thirty (30) day period by providing another certificate
to the utility. Failure to so renew the certificate shall entitle the utility to
initiate discontinuance procedures.
3)
Initial certification by the certifying physician may be by telephone if written
certification is forwarded within five (5) days.
b) Contents of Certificate
This certificate of medical emergency must be in writing on
stationery which clearly sets forth the name of the doctor, hospital, or medical
clinic. The certificate must clearly show the name of the person whose illness would
be aggravated, the nature of the medical emergency, and the name, title, and
signature of the licensed physician certifying the medical emergency.
c) Payment Arrangements
Within the first thirty (30) days the customer must enter into a
Deferred Payment Agreement for the retirement of the unpaid balance of the account
and keep the current account paid during the period that the unpaid balance is to be
retired.
d) Restoral of Service
In the event service is discontinued within ten (10) days prior to
certification of illness by or for a qualifying resident, service shall be restored
to that residence if a proper certification is thereafter made in accordance with
the foregoing provisions.
e)
Notice
Notice of discontinuance of service sent to residential customers
must include a notice substantially in the form of Appendix B
herein.
