provides a free wireless phone and 200 free minutes of wireless voice
service monthly to eligible customers, has announced a new alliance
with the North Carolina Community Action Association. The partnership
will help North Carolina's more than 454,000 unemployed residents
determine their eligibility and enroll in Assurance Wireless.
"Our community has been affected severely by current economic
conditions," said Sharon Goodson, NCCAA executive director. "We look
forward to working Assurance Wireless to help North Carolinians combat
these tough times."
The North Carolina Community Action Association (NCCAA) is a
nonprofit, non-partisan organization that advocates on behalf of North
Carolina's low-income and elderly citizens to ensure their voice is
heard at the local, state and national levels.
Not only does Assurance Wireless help low-income customers cut monthly
costs, but it also provides them a contact number for return calls
from prospective employers, which, studies show, can improve the
chances of securing employment. Assurance Wireless launched in North
Carolinain December 2009.
"With more than 738,000 North Carolinians living below the poverty
level, we are looking forward to working with the NCCAA to help their
clients get back on their feet," said Gary Carter, Manager for
National Partnerships for Assurance Wireless. "This week's event will
be a great opportunity for eligible residents to enroll on the spot
and start taking advantage of Assurance's cost-saving services."
In addition to free voice mail and call waiting, Assurance Wireless
provides caller ID and access to 911 in case of emergency. Beyond the
free 200 minutes, customers can pay for additional 10-cent-per-minute
domestic calling, 10-cent text, e-mail or instant messages,
international calling at competitive rates, and more.
Customers eligible for Assurance Wireless include those who
participate in Medicaid, Food Stamps/SNAP, Temporary Cash Assistance
(TCA/TANF), Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Bureau of Indian
Affairs Programs (BIA), Federal Public Housing Assistance (Section 8),
Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), or National
SchoolLunch Program's Free Lunch Program. Customers may also qualify
based on low household income.
Eligible residents can apply for Assurance Wireless by calling (800)
395-2171, or visiting www.assurancewireless.com.
Assurance Wireless is currently also available in Florida, Louisiana,
Maryland, Michigan, New York, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia. In North
Carolina, the service provides nearly triple the amount of minutes
offered by Safelink Wireless®.
About Assurance Wireless
Assurance Wireless, one of Sprint's prepaid brands, is supported by
the Lifeline Assistance program, part of the Low Income Program of the
federal Universal Service Fund (USF), which is administered by the
Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC), and designed to
ensure that quality telecommunications services are available to low-
income customers at reasonable and affordable rates. Assurance
Wireless uses the Nationwide Sprint Network, which reaches more than
275 million people.
To learn more about Assurance Wireless, including eligibility
requirements, please call (800) 395-2171 or visit www.assurancewireless.com
. Information is available in English and Spanish.
Please follow Assurance news on Twitter www.twitter.com/assurancecell,
YouTube, http://www.youtube.com/assurancewireless, or
Facebookwww.facebook.com/assurancecell.
Note: sources for all information and statistics are available upon
request
About Sprint Nextel
Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline
communications services bringing the freedom of mobility to consumers,
businesses and government users. Sprint Nextel served more than 48.2
million customers at the end of the second quarter of 2010 and is
widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative
technologies, including the first wireless 4G service from a national
carrier in the United States; offering industry-leading mobile data
services, leading prepaid brands including Virgin Mobile USA, Boost
Mobile, Common Cents Mobile, Assurance Wireless and PayLo; instant
national and international push-to-talk capabilities; and a global
Tier 1 Internet backbone. With its customer-focused strategy, you can
learn more and visit Sprint at www.sprint.com or www.facebook.com/
sprint and www.twitter.com/sprint.
