Which Sarasota and Manatee ALFs Report a Fixed Generator

What does Florida require of facilities when the power fails?

After the 2017 deaths of nursing home residents in Hollywood, Florida, following Hurricane Irma, the state adopted emergency power rules for nursing homes and assisted living facilities. Each must have an emergency power plan that keeps indoor temperatures at a safe level, no higher than 81 degrees, for at least 96 hours after a loss of electrical power, with enough fuel on hand.

The rules allow different ways to comply. Large buildings usually install a permanent generator sized for air conditioning. Some small homes rely on portable equipment or arrangements to move residents. AHCA's facility profiles carry each facility's reported emergency power data, including whether it has a fixed generator on site.

What does the local data show?

Here is how the fixed-generator flag breaks down by city for the two counties' licensed ALFs:

Most facilities without the flag are small residential homes: 23 of the facilities without a reported fixed generator are licensed for 16 or fewer residents. That does not mean they lack an approved plan; it means the plan relies on something else, so ask what.

What should you ask before hurricane season?

Ask what the generator powers: the whole building's air conditioning, or a cooling area where residents gather. Ask how many hours of fuel are stored on site and who refuels it. Ask under what conditions the facility evacuates, where residents go, how medications and records travel with them, and how families are told.

Coastal facilities, and anything on the barrier islands, may be ordered to evacuate before a storm even if the building has a generator. Inland buildings are more likely to shelter in place. Both plans are legitimate; what matters is that the facility can describe its own plan clearly.

What about parents who live at home?

For an older adult living independently, the plan has to come from the family. Know the evacuation zone, keep two weeks of medications, and register with the county's special-needs shelter program if your parent depends on electricity for oxygen or other equipment. Sarasota County and Manatee County emergency management both run registration.

Some ALFs offer short respite stays that families book ahead of a storm. Book early in the season, and remember that facilities near the coast may evacuate too.

What did the 2024 storms teach local families?

Hurricanes Helene and Milton in 2024 brought storm surge to Manatee and Sarasota barrier islands and power outages across both counties. Families whose parents lived at home learned how quickly a house without power becomes unsafe in Florida heat for someone with heart or lung disease. Families with parents in facilities learned to ask, before the season, whether the building would shelter in place or evacuate.

Neither answer is wrong. What families valued most was a facility that called them, early, with a clear plan.

How do I check a facility's emergency power data myself?

Look up the facility on AHCA's FloridaHealthFinder locator; the profile includes an emergency power section with the reported onsite alternate power source and the systems it supports, such as air conditioning, refrigeration and medical equipment. Our facility pages show whether a fixed generator is reported.

For nursing homes, ask to see the emergency power plan approved by the county emergency management agency, which the rules require.

Does a generator change what a facility costs?

Not directly; facilities do not usually itemize emergency power. But the cost of fuel, maintenance and a generator large enough for air conditioning is part of a building's overhead, and it is one reason larger communities are more likely to report one. When comparing two facilities at similar prices, the one with a fixed generator that powers residents' rooms has something real to show for it, especially for a parent with heart or lung disease who cannot tolerate heat. Ask to see the generator and the most recent test log during the tour.