The Effect of Power Disruptions on Public Health: Evidence from Power Outage and EMS Incidents

• In Event: Climate Inequities: Health, Migration, and Infrastructure in the Face of Disasters

Abstract

Power outages—driven by increasingly severe climate events and aging electric grid infrastructure—pose growing risks to public health. While prior studies have highlighted these concerns, most rely on qualitative accounts due to the lack of granular, quantitative data on both power interruptions and health outcomes. This paper provides the first empirical evidence of the impact of large-scale electric grid disruptions on public health using emergency medical service (EMS) incidents. We analyze more than six million EMS incident-level records, linked with our novel zip code–day-level power outage data across the state of Georgia during 2023–2024. Employing a spatial difference-in-differences design and other research methods, we leverage variation in both the timing and geography of major outage events to compare EMS incident-level outcomes between affected and unaffected areas. Our preliminary results indicate that large-scale outages significantly increase EMS incidents, particularly those related to failures of durable medical equipment (DME) that require continuous electricity. Leveraging the rich detail of EMS data—which includes over 2,500 categories of primary impressions—we also assess a broader range of health conditions and examine how their incidence varies with the severity and duration of power disruptions. By combining high-resolution outage and EMS data, our study moves beyond existing qualitative accounts or correlational research to offer rigorous causal evidence on the health consequences of electric grid unreliability. These findings underscore the urgent need for utilities and policymakers to adopt targeted resilience strategies—such as prioritized restoration—to safeguard medically vulnerable populations dependent on electricity-powered devices.

Author

• Brian Y. An, Georgia Institute of Technology
  Presenting Author