Analog Captioned Telephone Service (CTS) in Maine will be discontinued on December 31, 2026.
What is changing?
Captioned Telephone Service (CTS) for landline (analog) CapTel® phones is ending in Maine on December 31, 2026. Captioned Telephone Service for internet-connected captioned phones and other devices will continue, and is free for any Deaf or Hard of Hearing Mainer.
Who will be impacted?
If you use a CapTel® phone connected to landline phone service only (no internet), you may be impacted. This includes CapTel phone models 200, 800 or 840. After December 31, 2026, calls made on these phone models will still work but they will have no captions.
What should I do?
Contact the Maine Telecommunication Relay Outreach Program to assist with information and support during this transition.
- Free help and equipment is available to help you continue making captioned calls over upgraded phone equipment.
- CapTel 840PLUS phones can be changed to digital mode, and continue to receive captions during calls.
- You may also be able to use your current analog CapTel phone to make Voice Carry Over (VCO) calls.
For information about alternative equipment or services, please contact the Relay Outreach Program at Disability Rights Maine at 207-626-2774 extension 107 or email deafservices@drme.org.