Health Insurance & Medical Costs · Surprise rank #191
Heat Is Medically Dangerous? NY Can Buy and Install a Free Air Conditioner
HEAP Cooling Assistance provides qualifying households with a cooling device and eligible installation during the seasonal application period.
Who
Income-eligible households with a qualifying vulnerable member and no safe functioning cooling equipment.
What to do
Start here: Check OTDA's HEAP cooling page before the season and apply through the local district as soon as it opens.
Eligibility: HEAP income/resource and medical-vulnerability rules; household cannot have received a qualifying cooling benefit within the look-back period.
What you get
HEAP can provide and install an air conditioner or fan for an income-eligible household with a documented heat-related medical need.
Benefit: One cooling device and eligible installation, subject to current program limits.
Possible value: Several hundred to roughly a thousand dollars, depending on installation.
Good to know
Important: Seasonal, first-come and funding-limited.
Availability: 2026 cooling component closed; next season dates pending.
Why people miss it: It is separate from the Essential Plan cooling benefit and opens only seasonally.
Sources reviewed: Aug 2, 2026