I'm also very worried, as my neighborhood still has a lot of people using oil furnaces, primarily those on fixed incomes. Their situation is pretty dire, to put it lightly.

I was able to, yeah. It definitely helped me afford it. It's really sad that they got rid of it, basically ensuring that some people will be living in cold homes at some point this year. Those credits were good for everyone except for the oil companies: heat pumps help save on power bills (being one of the few > 100% efficient heating methods), they can reduce electrical grid stress if people move to heat pumps from resistive heating, and they help reduce pollution. It's just another way this administration and the oil companies are hurting everyone.

Which one did you get? One of the Mr Cool ones?

As long as it above 0K outside, you can (in theory) transfer energy. Heatpumps meant for cold weather climates use a different gas with a lower boiling point than those meant for hot weather climate (aircondition). But other than that, they work exactly the same.

The element can cool the air below zero. They have to play games if it gets to the due point of the outside air to keep from frosting up however.

Also, there is an efficiency hit, as the temperature differential gets larger. This is why ground sourced, or even water sourced are more efficient in colder climates.

Do you understand how an AC unit works when its hot as tits outside? I cant remember the specifics but its air pressure. One way makes it hot, the other makes it cold. Just reverse it for whichever situation you need it to be