State Phone Program Fulfills ADA’s Promise By Keeping Half a Million Californians Connected, Independent, Safer
Millions More To Benefit As California’s Population Ages
OAKLAND, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- On the 20th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which seeks to provide equal opportunity to people with disabilities, the Deaf and Disabled Telecommunications Program (DDTP) has made the promise into a reality for a half million Californians.
DDTP enables Californians who have difficulty seeing, hearing, speaking, remembering, and/or moving to communicate by telephone when these disabilities would make using a standard phone difficult or impossible. The California Telephone Access Program (CTAP) phones and California Relay Service (CRS), which DDTP provides at no cost to eligible Californians, gives people with disabilities equal access to mainstream society, preserves their independence, and connects them to medical and emergency service providers more easily.
In the coming years, the highly successful program, run by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), is poised to grow in order to meet the needs of California’s growing Baby Boomer population. Older people are often faced with age-related vision, mobility, and hearing loss disabilities. From 2010 to 2020, the population of Californians age 60 and over will grow from approximately 6.5 million to 9 million, according to the California Department of Aging.
“Diminished hearing, vision, or mobility is a dramatic, life-changing event for most people,” says Shelley Bergum, CEO, California Communications Access Foundation, which manages the Program for the CPUC. “When operating a telephone becomes difficult or impossible, people become cut-off from family, friends, caregivers, and medical help. Our program gives these people the opportunity to work, live independently, and remain safe.”
CTAP and CRS are made possible by a 0.2 percent surcharge on land-line and cell phone bills. In the last nine months ending March 2010 DDTP provided specialized telephones and devices to 10,166 eligible Californians. More than 90 telephone models and devices are available with features such as large buttons, amplified sound, flashing lights, text displays, and more.
“Along with enhancing people’s lives, DDTP can indirectly help decrease healthcare costs,” says Jonathan Lakritz, Program Manager at the CPUC, which oversees DDTP/CTAP/CRS. “By providing people with telephone access to family, caregivers, and others, DDTP is playing a role alongside home-based care and community services to keep people independent and in their homes. Remaining at home, which most people prefer, is nearly one-third the cost of living in a nursing or care facility.”
According to Across the States 2009: Profile of Long-Term Care and Independent Living, a report by the AARP Public Policy Institute, California’s Medicaid nursing facility expenditures per person served in 2005 were $25,833 while the cost of Medicaid Home and Community-Based Services for older people and adults with physical disabilities was $9,001.
Qualifying to receive a CTAP phone at no cost is easy and fast. There is no income or age requirement. Interested California residents can obtain an application form by contacting DDTP toll-free, visiting one of nine Service Centers statewide, or from the DDTP Web site. The application form must be signed by a licensed doctor, optometrist, audiologist, or by other professionals who are identified on the form. Once the form is submitted and approved and an approval letter is received, applicants call the 800 number or visit a Service Center to work with trained staff on choosing a phone. Phones can be picked up immediately or will be delivered without charge.
Contact Information For California Residents
Website: www.ddtp.org
California Telephone Access Program Contact Center
English: 1-800-806-1191
Spanish: 1-800-949-5650
TTY: 1-800-806-4474
Mandarin: 1-866-324-8747
Cantonese: 1-866-324-8754
Hmong: 1-866-880-3394
California Relay Service: Dial 711 (TTY/VCO/HCO/Speech to Speech)
CRS Providers:
Hamilton Relay: English 1-877-632-9095 and Spanish 1-877-419-8440
AT&T Relay: English 1-866-934-4288 and Spanish 1-866-985-4288
California CapTel: English 1-888-402-4018 and Spanish 1-877-330-0156
MORE INFORMATION/AUDIO-VIDEO FOOTAGE FOR MEDIA
Video clips featuring DDTP consumer advisory board members for video/audio reporting and print quotes are available for download and review. Please request a high-resolution DVD with all video files. You may also request footage of specialized phones.
Downloads:
Video Interviews: http://ddtp.cpuc.ca.gov/WorkArea/linkit.aspx?LinkIdentifier=id&ItemID=1046
Program Overview: http://ddtp.cpuc.ca.gov/uploadedFiles/News/Current/DDTP%20Program%20Overview.doc
2010 marks the 20th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ADA information: http://www.ada.gov/
Programs of the California Public Utilities Commission
Deaf and Disabled Telecommunications Program
OVERVIEW
The Deaf and Disabled Telecommunications Program (DDTP) is a program of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), providing Californians who are deaf and disabled with specialized telephone equipment and relay services through the California Telephone Access Program (CTAP) and California Relay Service (CRS), respectively.
California Telephone Access Program (CTAP)
CTAP provides specialized telephones and accessories for people having difficulty seeing, hearing, speaking, remembering, or moving. CTAP makes using the phone easy again—at no cost to program participants!
How to Qualify
- Be a California resident
- Have existing telephone service
- Complete an application and have a doctor or other certified health professional sign it to certify that you have a temporary or permanent impairment or disability
California Relay Service (CRS) – Dial 711
CRS enables deaf, hard-of-hearing, or speech-disabled people using a specialized device with keyboard and display (TTY) to communicate with people using a standard telephone via a communication assistant, and vice versa. The specially-trained communication assistant reads messages from the TTY user to the non-TTY user, and types their response back to the TTY user. Both TTY and non-TTY users can initiate calls by simply dialing 711, and giving the communication assistant the telephone number of the person they wish to call. CRS is available in English and Spanish 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. All operator services—including directory assistance—are available through CRS. See last page for more information regarding choices for CRS providers.
Speech to Speech Relay Service (STS)
Speech to Speech (STS) relay service is also offered as part of the CRS program for people who are speech-disabled and have difficulty being understood on the telephone. The speech-disabled user speaks their message to the specially-trained communication assistant who then re-voices the message to the other call party. This service is also completely free and is available to all users.
SERVICE CENTERS: Select, learn to use, and take home the equipment that best benefits the consumer. Call the CTAP Contact Center to confirm hours of operation.
Mon. – Fri. 9 AM – 5 PM
1. Burbank: 303 North Glenoaks Boulevard, Suite L-130, Burbank, CA 91502 (Entrance on East Palm Avenue)
2. Fresno: 7525 North Cedar Avenue, Suite 115 (At the corner of Cedar and Alluvial), Fresno, CA 93720
3. Oakland: 1970 Broadway, Suite 650, Oakland, CA 94612
4. Riverside: Bank of America Building, 6370 Magnolia Avenue, Suite 310, Riverside, CA 92506
5. Sacramento: 2033 Howe Avenue, Suite 150 (Cross Street is Cottage Avenue), Sacramento, CA 95825
6. San Diego: 2878 Camino Del Rio South, Suite 400 (½ Mile East of Texas Street), San Diego, CA 92108
7. Santa Ana: 2677 North Main Street, Suite 130, Santa Ana, CA 92705
Limited-Hour Service Centers
Redding: 2861 Churn Creek Road, Suite A, Redding, CA 96002 (in the business park just north of Baskin Robbins) Only open second Thursdays except holidays: 10:00 am - 4:00 pm.
Santa Barbara: 423 West Victoria Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101 (inside The Independent Living Resource Center) Only open second Wednesdays except holidays: 9:00 am - noon and 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm.
PROGRAM SUMMARY
The Deaf and Disabled Telecommunications Program (DDTP) is a state-mandated program of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), providing Californians who have difficulty hearing, seeing, moving, speaking, or remembering with equipment and relay services through the California Telephone Access Program (CTAP) and California Relay Service (CRS), respectively. Approximately 500,000 Californians currently benefit directly from program; however, all Californians benefit by improving communications throughout the state. DDTP was established in 1979 and has a $70M operating budget, which provides more than 90 different pieces of specialized equipment (the largest portion is amplification devices or amplified telephones). New equipment is introduced to the program via review of and recommendation from the Telecommunications Access for the Deaf and Disabled Administrative Committee (TADDAC) and the Equipment Program Advisory Committee (EPAC).
The Program conducts multi-cultural outreach in a variety of languages to address California’s diverse population. DDTP operates a Contact Center with toll-free numbers in a full range of access methods and languages for people to learn more about the Program, request Certification Forms, and determine suitable equipment. DDTP’s Distribution Center ships the selected equipment to consumers. Consumers can visit one of nine Service Centers across the state, to select, learn to use, and take home the equipment that can best benefit them. In some instances, Field Advisors visit Consumers in their homes to confirm installation and assess equipment suitability.
The Program is funded by a small (.2 percent) surcharge that appears on all Californian’s telephone bills. The money collected from this surcharge pays for both the equipment loan program (California Telephone Access Program: CTAP) and the California Relay Service (CRS). This surcharge appears on your phone bill as “CA Relay Service and Communications Devices Fund."
DDTP MISSION
Distribute telecommunications equipment and services that improve communication for all Californians!
CONTACT INFORMATION FOR CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS
Website: www.ddtp.org
Specialized Telephones and Devices:
California Telephone Access Program Contact Center
English: 1-800-806-1191
Spanish: 1-800-949-5650
TTY: 1-800-806-4474
Mandarin Voice: 1-866-324-8747
Cantonese Voice: 1-866-324-8754
Hmong Voice: 1-866-880-3394
California Relay Service: Call 711 (TTY/VCO/HCO/Speech to Speech)
CRS Providers:
Hamilton Relay: English 1-877-632-9095 and Spanish 1-877-419-8440
AT&T Relay: English 1-866-934-4288 and Spanish 1-866-985-4288
California CapTel: English 1-888-402-4018 and Spanish 1-877-330-0156
MORE INFORMATION: AUDIO-VIDEO FOOTAGE, PHOTOS FOR MEDIA
Video featuring interviews with DDTP consumer advisory board members for video or audio reporting and quotes can be viewed at: http://ddtp.cpuc.ca.gov/WorkArea/linkit.aspx?LinkIdentifier=id&ItemID=1046
Video clips featuring DDTP consumer advisory board members for video/audio reporting and print quotes are available for download and review. Please request a high-resolution DVD with all video files. You may also request footage of specialized phones.
CONTACT:
DDTP
Mary V. Atkins, 1-510-302-1157 or 1-510-302-1100 or 1-510-909-5081
cell: 1-510-909-5081
DDTP Marketing Department Manager
marya@ddtp.org
KEYWORDS: United States North America California
INDUSTRY KEYWORDS: Seniors Technology Telecommunications Consumer
MEDIA:
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