STATE EP Alert 5.19.2026
High Heat, Severe Weather Expected Across New York
Home care provider agencies should prepare for a period of high heat and potentially severe weather expected across New York State beginning today, May 19, through Wednesday, May 20.
According to a Department of Health (DOH) Health Alert, Heat Advisories are in effect through Wednesday night, with hot and humid conditions expected statewide. Temperatures are forecast to reach the mid to upper 90s, and strong to severe thunderstorms may bring high winds, heavy rain, and potentially damaging hail. These conditions could create disruptions that affect both staff travel and continuity of patient care.
For Licensed Home Care Services Agencies (LHCSAs), now is an appropriate time to review emergency preparedness procedures and assess operational readiness. Consider the following actions:
Review your Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan (CEMP), including transportation and communication procedures.
Identify patients who may be at greater risk during periods of extreme heat, including individuals without air conditioning, those with chronic medical conditions, or patients dependent on electricity for medical equipment.
Reinforce communication procedures with field staff regarding schedule changes, travel disruptions, weather conditions, and patient status updates.
Confirm that agency systems and backup procedures are functioning properly, including communication systems and any critical infrastructure.
Encourage staff and patients to limit unnecessary outdoor activity during periods of peak heat.
Monitor weather conditions closely and evaluate staffing or coverage adjustments if severe weather affects travel or operations.
All licensed and regulated providers are reminded that disruptions to services or infrastructure should be reported to the Department’s State Medical Operations Coordination Center (SMOCC) at (917) 909-2676.
General Guidance
Monitor weather conditions regularly to keep workers informed, and be sure caregivers keep patients informed of weather alerts at each shift.
We encourage all providers and patients to sign up for NY Alert, the state’s Mass Notification System used to warn citizens of emergencies and provide other critical information. Additionally, New York’s new Triple Three Triple Zero can provide increased awareness alerts via text using your zip code/s. Mobile phone users simply text their zip code to 333111 to receive up-to-the-minute weather alerts.
Home Care at High Risk
Home care agencies must first identify people at increased risk for heat-related illness and death. This goes above and beyond the basics of noting those reliant on electricity for equipment.
Adults aged 60 and older, those with obesity, and individuals with limited mobility are all at increased risk of heat-related illnesses and death. Health conditions such as diabetes and kidney disease can lead to fluid and electrolyte imbalances. Many neurological conditions result in decreased perspiration, our primary cooling mechanism, and even prolonged inflammation can affect fluid balance. Behavioral health issues also add to increased risk, and your home care patients are very likely to have a combination of several of these factors.
Many medications including diuretics, some blood pressure medications (e.g., beta blockers) antihistamines, and even antidepressants and psychotropics may impair thermoregulation or inhibit thirst, leading to dehydration. Those serving pediatric and/or hospice patients take note: the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is currently updating labeling to indicate that scopolamine patches greatly increase the risk of hyperthermia. The list of medications increasing the risk of heat-related illness is also directly available from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Heat Advisory Guidance
Health care providers, including home and community-based services organizations, must anticipate and prepare for an increase in heat-related illnesses and complications among vulnerable populations. Most heat-related illness sufferers do not have (or don’t use) air conditioners and succumb in their own homes. Fans alone do not provide sufficient cooling.
Home care agencies and other health care providers are strongly urged to contact their caregivers and most vulnerable patients to raise awareness and advise them to stay cool and well-hydrated. Be vigilant in monitoring for symptoms that indicate heat-related illnesses such as dehydration, heat cramps/exhaustion/stroke, and complications from heart and lung disease.
Instruct patients and caregivers to use home air conditioners or seek cooling centers or locations that are air-conditioned such as a mall, library, or supermarket. HCP reminds providers that home care workers are also safer in an air-conditioned environment during a high-heat event.
Cooling Options
New York City residents can call 311 or visit the city’s cooling center website to find safe locations during a heat wave. Note that the NYC cooling centers (and the website tool) are only activated during times of high heat.
A list of cooling centers in other areas of the state can be found on the NYSDOH Cooling Center Locator. This website is available in over a dozen languages, and users can search a list of centers or use a locator map. Tips on air quality can be found on DOH’s dedicated Clean Air Center site.
In addition to its regular Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP) cooling assistance program, NYS also offers the Essential Plan Cooling Program, which will provide free air conditioners to New Yorkers on the State’s Essential Plan who are diagnosed with at least one of 16 qualifying conditions.
More Information
The NYC Emergency Management heat topics website offers more information, including how to prepare your home, ways to help your neighbors, and how to recognize heat-related illnesses. Tips to conserve water and energy can also be found.
See the Heat Health website for providers maintained by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for a list of risk factors and tips for patient management.
Visit the Department of Environmental Conservation for more information on NY State efforts regarding extreme heat and its effects on individuals.
