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NOTE: The above checklist is only a guide. It is not to be used as a complete and final checklist on which to base your decision about eligibility. It can, however, be used for prompting questions, discussion, note taking, and may be completed and maintained in the case record on an as needed basis. It is not required that one be completed. Use it in a manner which best helps you.

Your decision about the “degree of possible harm and health effects of extreme weather conditions” is a social decision -- not a medical decision; therefore, concentrate your interview and questions on areas related to “cause and effect”. For example, if the applicant tells you she takes medication for high-blood pressure and diabetes, it is not so important to know what the illness and medications are, but rather what causes or aggravates the illness. Is it weather related? Is the illness aggravated by extreme weather conditions? Next, what effect do extreme weather conditions have on the illness or medical condition?

Finally, a medical (doctor, nurse, etc.) statement is not a requirement for Crisis Assistance. Only the situations where the applicant does not appear to be eligible (yet she maintains she is eligible because of her health) should a medical statement be required; then, it is up to the applicant to go to the time and expense of securing a medical statement. Be careful not to give an applicant false hope by requiring her to get a medical statement.

Reviewed 2024