Clarity ASL Interpreting Patrick Hoarty · NIC

Resources

DeafBlind Resources: Services, Equipment, and Support in New England

For DeafBlind people, families, and the people who work with them: national and New England programs, free communication equipment, and the basics on SSPs and touch-based communication.

What communication access can I ask for?

  • Businesses that serve the public must communicate clearly with you. For DeafBlind people, ADA aids can include a qualified tactile interpreter, Braille, or large print.
  • If video interpreting won't work because you can't see the screen well, an in-person interpreter may be needed.
  • In Rhode Island, RICDHH's referral service works with many communication modes, including tactile. On the RICDHH request form, you can mark that the person is DeafBlind.
  • In Massachusetts, MCDHH's referral service includes tactile and close-vision interpreting for DeafBlind people.

Full info: ADA.gov: Effective Communication · RICDHH: Interpreting Services · MCDHH Statewide Interpreter and CART Referral Service

Helen Keller National Center (HKNC)

  • HKNC is a national program for youth (16 and older), working-age adults, and seniors (55 and older) with combined hearing and vision loss. It focuses on vocational rehabilitation: training and support to reach work and life goals.
  • Its headquarters is in Sands Point, New York. It also offers services in regions across the country and virtually.
  • New England has a regional office that serves Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. The regional representative can help with consultation, advocacy, assessment, training, referrals, local services, and connecting with the DeafBlind community.
  • HKNC also keeps a confidential national registry of DeafBlind people. You can choose to add your information.

Full info: HKNC: Helen Keller National Center · HKNC: New England region

iCanConnect: free communication equipment

  • iCanConnect is the FCC's National Deaf-Blind Equipment Distribution Program (NDBEDP). It gives free equipment and training to people with significant vision and hearing loss who meet disability and income guidelines.
  • The equipment helps with phone, internet, and other distance communication. Examples include smartphones, tablets, computers, and braille devices.
  • In Massachusetts and Rhode Island, Perkins School for the Blind runs iCanConnect. Each state page has the contacts and the application.
  • National iCanConnect line: 800-825-4595.

Full info: FCC: NDBEDP (iCanConnect) · iCanConnect: Massachusetts · iCanConnect: Rhode Island

Massachusetts programs

  • DeafBlind Extended Supports (DBES), from the Massachusetts Commission for the Blind, serves people ages 14 and older who are DeafBlind and/or legally blind and have cognitive, emotional, behavioral, or complex medical conditions. Services depend on need and eligibility. They can include case management, advocacy, technology and training, and referrals to the DeafBlind Community Access Network and the DeafBlind Contact Center.
  • DeafBlind Community Access Network (DBCAN), run by DEAF, Inc., pairs DeafBlind adults in Massachusetts with trained providers who act as co-navigators. They help with things like reading mail, getting around (including the MBTA), errands, exercise, and medical appointments.
  • MCDHH refers tactile and close-vision interpreters.

Full info: Mass.gov: DeafBlind Extended Supports (DBES) · DEAF, Inc.: DBCAN

Rhode Island programs

  • RICDHH (Rhode Island Commission on the Deaf and Hard of Hearing) handles interpreter and CART referrals, including tactile, at (401) 354-7630 (phone or video phone).
  • Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired (SBVI), part of the Office of Rehabilitation Services, offers independent living and social service programs for people who meet its vision eligibility rules.
  • iCanConnect for Rhode Island is run by Perkins School for the Blind (see above).

Full info: RICDHH: Interpreting Services · RI ORS: Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired

Elsewhere in New England

Full info: HKNC: New England region · FCC: NDBEDP (iCanConnect)

What is an SSP? What about touch-based communication?

  • A Support Service Provider (SSP) is a trained person who shares visual and environmental information, acts as a sighted guide, and helps with communication in the DeafBlind person's preferred language.
  • SSPs are not interpreters. An SSP can help with a short exchange, like filling out a form at the doctor's office. For the medical exam itself, an interpreter would be needed.
  • Many DeafBlind people communicate by touch, for example tactile ASL or ProTactile. AADB lists these among the ways a DeafBlind person may prefer to communicate.
  • The best first step is to ask. AADB's advice to medical staff is to ask the person which way of communicating they prefer.

Full info: AADB: Support Service Providers at a Glance · AADB

American Association of the Deaf-Blind (AADB)

  • AADB is a national consumer organization of, by, and for DeafBlind Americans and their supporters. It counts all types and degrees of combined vision and hearing loss.
  • AADB advocates on issues like SSP services and communication access.

Full info: AADB

Sources

This page is general information, not legal advice. Last reviewed October 2026.