The Assistive Tech “Library” Most Families Don’t Know About

A little-known New York program is helping families try life-changing devices—FOR FREE—before spending thousands

There’s a program in New York that quietly solves one of the biggest challenges families of children and adults with disabilities face: how to know what actually works before spending hundreds or even thousands of dollars on it.

It’s called the Technology-Related Assistance for Individuals with Disabilities program, or TRAID. And for many families, it can mean the difference between guessing and getting it right.

The TRAID program is a statewide initiative designed to increase access to assistive technology for people with disabilities. Through regional centers across New York, it offers free device loans, hands-on demonstrations, training, and guidance. The goal is simple but powerful. It helps people access tools that support independence at home, in school, at work, and in everyday life.

What makes TRAID stand out is that you don’t have to buy anything to try it.

In many ways, it functions like a library. But instead of books, you can borrow assistive technology. That might include com…