Communications Center for
Individuals with Disabilities:
1 800 974-6006 (voice and TTY)

If you or someone you know has difficulty using a telephone because of a disability, we may be able to help. The specially trained people at the NYNEX Communications Center for Individuals with Disabilities can introduce you to telecommunications products and services designed to meet your needs.

We offer a variety of products for people with certified visual, hearing, speech or motion disabilities. (See "How to Qualify" for certification requirements.) Many products can be rented, leased or purchased (at the manufacturer's wholesale price, when appropriate certification is presented). Various warranty and maintenance plans are available for these products. Also available to you at the Center free of charge are certain helpful dialing aids.

You can call our Communications Center for Individuals with Disabilities Monday through Friday, 9 am to 5 pm. You also may visit the Center to discuss your needs with one of our representatives. The Center is located on the ground floor of 204 Second Avenue, at 13th Street, Manhattan, and is accessible to people with disabilities.

Call toll-free from anywhere in New York State
1 800 974-6006 (voice and TTY)

From Greenwich and Byram, Connecticut call:
1 212 387-7222 (voice) or 1 212 387-7220 (TTY)

Assistive telephone products for rent,
lease or purchase:
1 800 974-6006 (voice and TTY)

• Weak Speech Handset -- Increases the volume of your voice. (This handset may be leased or purchased separately; or as part of a standard telephone set.)

• Electronic Artificial Larynx -- Reproduces the sound of your voice when held to your throat. Teletypewriter (TTY) -- Sends typewritten words over telephone lines to another TTY.

• Loud Tone Ringer Device -- Rings at a frequency that can be heard by most people who are hard-of-hearing.

• Impaired Hearing Handset -- Increases the volume of the incoming voice.

• Amplified Volume Handset -- Amplifies the incoming voice for people who are severely hard-of-hearing.

• Light Signaler Device -- Connects to an ordinary house lamp, which flashes on and off each time the phone rings.

Dialing aids available free of charge:
1 800 974-6006 (voice and TTY)

• Enlarged Number Rings -- Makes numbers on a rotary phone dial easier to see.

• Enlarged Stick-On Numbers -- Makes numbers on a push-button phone keypad easier to see.

• Dial "O" Overlay -- Fits over the push-button keypad and dials the operator when any key is pressed.

• Raised Push-Button Grid -- Makes push-button dialing easier and reduces the possibility of dialing errors.

How to qualify

You must be certified as a person with a disability to receive the telephone service exemptions, discounts or products for people with special needs.

A licensed physician, specialist (such as an audiologist or speech pathologist) or an authorized New York State agency may sign your application or provide a letter certifying your disability.

Applications and information may be obtained by calling the NYNEX Communications Center for People with Disabilities at 1 800 974-6006 (voice and TTY).

If you are 62 years of age or older you may lease or purchase products for people who are hard-of-hearing simply by providing proof of age.

NYNEX LifeLine Service:
1 800 555-5000 (voice), Monday-Friday, 9 am-5 pm

NYNEX LifeLine Service offers a reduced rate on the basic monthly charge to eligible households. There also is a discount on the cost of installing new service. If you're income eligible for any one of the following, you also are eligible for LifeLine.

• Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC)

• Food Stamps

• Home Relief (HR)

• Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP)

• Medicaid

• Supplemental Security Income (SSI)

• Veteran's Disability Pension (non-service related disabilities)

• Veteran's Surviving Spouse Pension (non-service related disabilities)

There are two types of LifeLine Service. Basic LifeLine Service saves you $9.10 each month. You pay only $1.00 a month for your basic phone service. In addition, you pay for each outgoing call you make. Flat Rate LifeLine Service saves you $8.10 a month on your basic monthly charge. Like other flat rate customers, you can call anywhere in your flat rate local calling area at no extra charge. This service is not available in some areas. Your NYNEX service representative can tell you which LifeLine Service is available in your area. The installation charge for LifeLine Service is $10.00 and includes inside wire and one jack.

Special NYNEX telephone service exemptions and discounts:
1 800 555-5000 (voice), Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm

• NYNEX telephone usage discount -- Reduces phone usage charges for customers who have a speech disability and use a TTY.

• Directory listings -- Your NYNEX directory listing also may include the letters TTY to show that communication can take place over the line using another TTY.

• Special Phone Credit Card -- Allows NYNEX operator-assisted calls from NYNEX coin phones at the lower direct-dial rate.

• Directory Assistance -- Provides free NYNEX Directory Assistance Service to customers unable to use telephone directories.

• Dial Operator Privileges -- Offers free NYNEX operator assistance to customers who have difficulty dialing (no certification needed).

• Braille and Large Print Bills -- NYNEX telephone bills in Braille or large print are available to qualified customers.

New York Relay Center:
To place a call:
TTY users dial 1 800 662-1220
Non-TTY (voice) users dial 1 800 421-1220

This service allows TTY users and non-TTY users to communicate. Special operators, called communications assistants, translate and relay conversations confidentially.

• There is no extra charge for this service.

• Talk as long as you like and be billed the same as a direct-dial call.

• The Relay Center operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

• Calls can be relayed from any location in New York State to anywhere in the continental United States.

• You may request that your long distance company be used when placing long distance calls.

Technology Related Assistance for
Individuals with Disabilities Center (TRAID):
1 800 522-4369 (voice and TTY)

The New York State Office of the Advocate for Persons with Disabilities, in partnership with NYNEX, has established several regional TRAID Centers throughout New York that enable people with disabilities to learn about and test assistive equipment. An assistive technology device is any item, product or piece of equipment that can be used to maintain or improve the functional abilities of individuals with disabilities. These TRAID Centers bring a wide range of telecommunications equipment and services closer to seniors, family members, employers and people with disabilities. For more information and to locate the TRAID Center nearest you, call 1 800 522-4369 (voice and TTY).

Free Tele-Consumer Hotline
1 800 332-1124 (voice and TTY)

The Tele-Consumer Hotline is an independent consumer education service offering people with disabilities free advice on comparing special telephone equipment and services. Spanish is also spoken.

Be Alert to "Slamming"

"Slamming" occurs when the long distance company of your choice is changed without your knowledge or approval (Federal regulations prohibit these kinds of changes). Some companies may offer you low rates, or a chance to enter a contest and win prizes. Other companies may send you a check made out in your name. Although you may not realize it, your signed contest entry form or check is a "letter of agency" giving approval to switch your telephone service to that company. When you receive your bill, you may be surprised to find that the company that carries your calls has changed.

Follow these tips to protect yourself against slamming:

• Be careful about high pressure telephone sales calls and "special" offers. Ask to see any offer in writing.

• Read carefully all written material, especially the fine print.

• Check the name and charges of the long distance company on your monthly phone bill to be sure that it is the company you selected.

If your long distance company has been changed without your approval, call the company listed on your bill. You are entitled to be switched back to the company of your choice at no charge. You also can have any disputed charges billed at the rate of your original company. If the telephone company listed on your bill refuses to comply with your request, you may write to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for help in resolving the dispute:

Federal Communications Commission
2025 M Street NW
Washington, D. C. 20554

Federal regulations prevent NYNEX from influencing your choice of long distance company. We are obligated to change your long distance company upon notification from that company. There is a $5.00 charge for changing your long distance company.

As a final protection, you can call your NYNEX service representative and request that no changes to your long distance provider be made unless you contact us directly and approve a specific change.