On January 1, 2006, Arizona Relay Service, a division of the Arizona Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (ACDHH), will begin providing qualified Arizona residence with the long awaited CapTel Relay Services and CapTel phones which, enables users to hear and read word-for-word, voiced phone conversations in real time.
"We are proud to offer this service and equipment to the many Arizonans living with hearing loss," said Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano. "This will be a critical enhancement to their quality of life."
Qualified Arizona residents can receive a CapTel phone from the Arizona Telecommunications Equipment Distribution Program at no charge. Due to funding restrains distribution is limited. To apply for the equipment contact ACDHH at (602) 264-6876 or 1-866-223-3412 or visit https://www.acdhh.org/documents/captel_application.pdf
"CapTel phones and services will be available to anyone living in Arizona who uses hearing aids, assistive listening devices, deaf or severely hard of hearing but speak for themselves on the telephone because they will be able read and hear every word of the conversation in real time and not miss a thing," shared Arizona Commission for the Deaf and the Hard of Hearing's Executive Director Sherri Collins.
To use CapTel Relay Services, Arizonians who have a CapTel phone, place a call just as they would with a traditional phone- by dialing the number of the person they wish to talk to. The CapTel phone automatically connects to a captioning service when dialed. When the other party answers the CapTel user can hear and read what the other party is saying. The transcription that the caller is reading in the display window is made possible by a specially trained operator at the CapTel Relay Service Center. Voice recognition technology allows the operator to transcribe into written text everything that the other party is saying.
In order for a CapTel user to receive captions on a voiced incoming call, the person calling must first dial CapTel's Relay Service toll free number at 1 -877-243-2823. The CapTel phone user answers the phone by simply picking up the handset.
To learn more about how CapTel Relay Services work visit their website at www.captionedtelephone.com.
