Good Shepherd Provides Access to Free Telecommunications Equipment for People with Disabilities

Individuals with disabilities who cannot use a standard telephone to communicate can receive free specialized telephone equipment through Good Shepherd Rehabilitation Network. As a registered Assistive Technology Resource Center for Pennsylvania’s Initiative on Assistive Technology (PIAT [1]), Good Shepherd offers access to the state’s Telecommunication Device Distribution Program (TDDP). TDDP equipment includes amplified phones, captioned phones, phones with large buttons and speaker phones.

People with hearing, sight or speech impairments or who have physical or intellectual disabilities may be eligible for the program. Applicants must be Pennsylvania residents age 6 or over who have:

• A disability that prevents independence in using a standard phone
• A gross income of less than 200 percent of the federal poverty guidelines
• Current telephone service
• The ability to learn how to use the requested device(s)

Free demonstrations and equipment loans also are available through Good Shepherd to help determine what equipment might work best to suit an individual’s needs.

For more information on the TDDP, contact Carrie Kane, Good Shepherd’s PIAT [1] coordinator, at
1-877-629-1717. The Assistive Technology Resource Center is located at the Good Shepherd Health & Technology Center, 850 South Fifth Street, Allentown.

TDDP is implemented by PIAT, a program of the Institute of Disabilities at Temple University in conjunction with the PA Office of Vocational Rehabilitation and the PA Public Utility Commission.