Not paying your bills is punishable by death. The utility had already arranged to have someone go out and shoot her, but then they decided to save money on the hitman and just cut off her oxygen.



But seriously, in the US you can notify the utility that you have life support equipment, and your power will not be cut off for non-payment. Also these kinds of systems should have back-ups for power outages and alarms to let you know that the power is off so that you can make "other arrangements" for your life-saving oxygen.
dragonrider Reviewed by dragonrider on . Woman on oxygen machine dies when company shuts off power Woman on oxygen machine dies when company shuts off power May. 19, 2008 07:15 AM Associated Press WELLINGTON, New Zealand - A New Zealand woman dependent on an oxygen machine for survival died when the power company shut off the electricity to her home because of an overdue bill, a coroner's court heard Monday. Folole Muliaga, 44, a nursery school teacher, needed an oxygen machine to help her breathe and died two hours after Mercury Energy cut power to her home, Auckland Coroner Rating: 5