Having access to a telephone is an integral part of daily life and can often be taken for granted by most, but\u00a0for some individuals, particularly low-income individuals (including seniors and people with disabilities) access to a telephone can be a luxury, not a privilege. However, some new public safeguards have been put into place to help ensure that those who are most economically fragile now have access to the same privileges as other citizens.<\/p>\n
The Low Income Program of the Universal Service Fund, which is administered by the Universal Service Administrative Company <\/a>(USAC), helps eligible low-income consumers establish and maintain telephone service by discounting basic, local service provided by local telephone companies. Consumers apply for the discounts through their local telephone company or designated agency.<\/p>\n Safelink Wireless <\/a>also runs a program that provides free cell phones and minutes to income eligible consumers, often based on a person’s participation in a state or federal support program or by meeting the Federal U.S Poverty Guidelines.<\/p>\n To learn more about any of these lifeline programs, visit http:\/\/www.lifeline.gov\/lifeline_Consumers.html<\/a>.<\/p>\n And lastly, the Maryland Department of Information Technology\u00a0oversees the Maryland Accessible Telecommunications (MAT)\u00a0program that provides free assistive telecommunications equipment to qualifying Maryland residents. MAT <\/a>provides free TTY’s, amplified phones and more to applicants who have a disability that makes using a standard phone difficult.<\/p>\n