Assistive Listening Devices: What They Are, ADA Rules and Free Equipment

What are assistive listening devices?

The 2010 ADA Standards define an assistive listening system as transmitters, receivers and coupling devices that bypass the space between a sound source and a listener. A speaker's voice travels by signal to a receiver, so it doesn't have to cross the room first.

The Standards' advisory notes sort these systems by how the signal travels:

• Induction loop. Where a loop serves every seat, a venue can skip the separate hearing-aid-compatible receivers described below.
• FM radio. The advisory says FM may suit some open-air venues better than infrared, which loses effect in sunlight.
• Infrared. The signal stays within a given space, so the advisory favors it where a confidential transmission matters.
• Hard-wired. The receiver connects by direct wiring instead of a wireless signal.

People also use the term for equipment at home, such as amplified phones, ring signalers and Bluetooth accessories. State equipment programs, covered further down, supply many of them. For the aids themselves, see hearing aid costs and Bluetooth hearing aids.

Assistive listening devices for theaters: what the ADA table asks

The 2010 Standards (§ 219.2) call for a system in each assembly area where audible communication is integral to the use of the space. Assembly areas include theaters, movie houses, concert halls, lecture halls, classrooms, courtrooms and public meeting rooms. Outside courtrooms, a space with no audio amplification is exempt.

The table at the top of this page gives two minimums for each seating band: total receivers, and how many of them must work with hearing aids. Up to 200 seats, the second figure is 2. From 201 seats up, it is 1 per 4 receivers, or fraction thereof.

The § 219.3 exceptions change how a venue reads that table. A building with several assembly areas under one management may count receivers on the total seats of those areas, provided all receivers work with all systems. Where an induction loop serves all seats in an area, the hearing-aid-compatible minimum no longer applies.

If you wear hearing aids, § 706.3 is the line to know. A compatible receiver connects to the telecoil in your aids through a neckloop. The advisory lists neckloops, and headsets that can be worn as neckloops, as compatible. It lists earbuds, which may mean taking your aids out, and headsets worn over the ear as not compatible.

So before an event, ask two things: do your aids have a telecoil, and does the venue have a receiver with a neckloop? The table states a minimum for a space. It can't tell you whether a given venue meets the rules, since the exceptions and the technical rules in § 706 also apply.

Hearing loops: where they fit

A hearing loop is the induction-loop option in the Standards' definition of an assistive listening system. It's one of several permitted types, so a venue can meet § 219.2 with another system. Where a loop does serve every seat, the hearing-aid-compatible receiver minimum falls away, as described above.

FDA lists the T-coil among hearing aid features and connects that setting to theaters, auditoriums, houses of worship and other places "that have an induction loop or FM installation." Check that your aids have one, and ask the venue which system it uses. Installation prices and lists of looped venues sit outside our data, so this page gives neither.

Hearing impaired devices for home: phones, ringers and captions

For the phone at home, Minnesota's device page describes several kinds:

• Amplified ringers, which attach to your phone so you can hear it ring, with adjustable loudness and tone.
• Amplified phones, with a built-in amplifier.
• Portable phone amplifiers.
• Captioned phones, which show the other person's words on a screen while you talk and listen.

The captioned phone is the one with a connection question: some need internet service and some don't, so ask before you pick one.

The captions themselves have a federal funding rule. Under the FCC's rule at 47 CFR 64.604, there is a cost for each minute of captions generated, paid from a federally administered fund, and the registration rule at 47 CFR 64.611 has the user confirm an understanding that the cost of internet captioned telephone service (IP CTS) is funded by the TRS Fund. That rule speaks to the captioning service, not to the phone, the internet connection or the calls. Which providers the FCC lists and how to sign up are on our captioned telephone page; phones rated to work with hearing aids are on hearing aid compatible phones.

Free equipment for deaf and hard of hearing: four state programs

State programs supply many of these devices, and each sets its own rules. Here are four read in October 2026, each limited to its own residents. Their cost rules differ: New Mexico and Oregon lend at no cost, Minnesota describes its devices as free, and Washington sets the cost by income. New Mexico publishes an income limit; Oregon states it has none.

New Mexico's Telecommunications Equipment Distribution Program lends telecommunications devices at no cost to qualifying residents who need help communicating on the phone. Its devices include amplified phones, iPads, speech-generating devices and neck loops. Its page lists four requirements: total household income of $50,000 or less, a landline for an amplified phone or internet for an iPad, New Mexico residency, and documented hearing or speech loss. The iPad option carries its own criteria on the application. Its allowed uses include video relay and internet captioned telephone service.

Minnesota renamed its program Minnesota Access to Communication Technology, or MN ACT, in August 2024. That announcement describes free telecommunication devices for people with hearing loss or a physical or speech disability. The list covers smartphones and tablets with accessible apps, captioned and amplified phones, ring signalers, cell phone amplifiers and Bluetooth accessories, plus setup, training and repairs. It dates from 2024, so ask what is available now. The program decides who qualifies.

Washington's Telecommunication Equipment Distribution program serves Washington residents and is not free for everyone: the cost of equipment is based on a sliding fee scale which uses the client's annual income and family size to determine whether there is a cost to the client. The application asks for income and a professional's certification. One device is gone from the list: Washington's captioned telephone page says its office will no longer distribute analog captioned telephones through the program; the separate route for captions is IP CTS, described above.

Oregon's Telecommunication Devices Access Program (TDAP), run by the Public Utility Commission and listed in the sources below, loans specialized communications equipment at no cost and with no income guidelines to eligible Oregon residents age 4 and older. A professional certifies the disability on the application, and the program applies its own residency, age and device rules.

In another state, look for its telecommunications equipment program and read its conditions directly. If you need the aids themselves, start with free hearing aids.

iCanConnect: the federal program for people who are deaf-blind

The FCC's National Deaf-Blind Equipment Distribution Program, also called iCanConnect, serves a specific group. It provides equipment to low-income people who are deaf-blind or who have both significant vision loss and significant hearing loss. Wearing hearing aids doesn't place someone in this group on its own.

The FCC page sets out these criteria:

• A combination of vision loss and hearing loss that meets the definitions on the page.
• Written attestation of that loss from a professional, such as an educator, a rehabilitation counselor or a health professional.
• Income of not more than 400% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines, shown in a 2026 chart by household size, with proof of low-income status.

The equipment is meant to make phones, internet-based voice calls, email, text messaging, video calls and internet access usable. It may be mainstream or specialized. Assessment of needs, installation, training and other technical support are also available, though training leaves out braille instruction, keyboard skills and basic computer skills.

Each state has a certified program, and the FCC page links to it. That program reviews any application, so the criteria above describe the rules and give no answer for one person.

Paying for equipment: tax rules and billing codes

IRS Publication 502 lets you include the cost of "special telephone equipment that lets a person who is deaf, hard of hearing, or has a speech disability communicate over a regular telephone", including TTY and TDD equipment, plus the cost of repairing it. It also lists a hearing aid with the batteries, repairs and maintenance needed to operate it. Neither entry names a personal FM system, so ask a tax professional about one. More on deducting hearing costs.

CMS has billing codes for this equipment. V5281 through V5290 cover personal FM/DM systems, neck loop, ear-level, direct-audio-input and Bluetooth receivers, transmitters, adapters and microphones. The national Medicaid file holds 0 published lines for those ten codes from January 2018 through December 2024. The source masks cells under 12 lines or 12 patients, so an empty row isn't proof that nobody received one or that Medicaid refuses to pay. It only means we have no paid amount to show. State rules are on does Medicaid cover hearing aids.