Hamilton Relay to Provide Captioning for Telephone Services in Virginia

The Virginia Department for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (VDDHH) has selected Hamilton Relay to provide Captioned Telephone (CapTel) services to the deaf or hard of hearing throughout the state.

The service, which is available in English and Spanish, enables users to make and receive telephone calls using captioned telephone technology.

Captioned Telephone is similar to closed captioning on television in that it allows users to read captions of their telephone conversations through the use of a CapTel phone. Behind the scenes, operators at the Captioning Center use advanced voice recognition technology to convert everything that's said into captions that appear on a display screen built into the CapTel phone. Virginia residents can purchase CapTel phones or may qualify to obtain them at no cost through VDDHH.

"We are thrilled to provide this service to the residents of Virginia who may benefit from Hamilton's Captioned Telephone service," said Dixie Ziegler, vice president of Hamilton Relay. "Hamilton CapTel allows for smoother telephone communication between individuals who are hard of hearing and those who are hearing. The service can make an incredible difference in the relationships between CapTel users and their family, business associates, and friends. We want to make sure that no Virginian misses a word of what is being said on the telephone."

With the signing of Virginia, Hamilton Relay's CapTel service is now available in 18 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. The service was already available in Arizona, California, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Montana, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Utah, and Wyoming.