Can phone companies do more to block robocalls?

In this photo taken April 3, 2015, Eleanor Blum, 88, solves crossword puzzles, as she lets her phone go unanswered at her in the Sherman Oaks area of Los Angeles. Jeri Vargas put her elderly mother on the “Do Not Call” list years ago. So why is the 88-year-old woman with Alzheimer’s disease still getting several recorded phone calls a day pitching her everything from vacation cruises to medical alert devices and fire extinguishers? (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes) In this photo taken April 3, 2015, Eleanor Blum, 88, solves crossword puzzles, as she lets her phone go unanswered at her in the Sherman Oaks area of Los Angeles. Jeri Vargas put her elderly mother on the “Do Not Call” list years ago. So why is the 88-year-old woman with Alzheimer’s disease still getting several recorded phone calls a day pitching her everything from vacation cruises to medical alert devices and fire extinguishers? (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

By Associated Press April 8, 2015 1 min read

WASHINGTON (AP) – Tired of those annoying, sometimes costly, robocalls favored by scammers?

The Federal Communications Commission is being asked to consider whether more can be done to block them, but the options appear to be limited.

The phone companies say they worry that automatic call blocking might run afoul of laws requiring them to connect phone calls and have asked the FCC to clarify that it doesn’t. Many carriers offer call blocking services to consumers, sometimes for a fee. But they also don’t want regulators to create any hard-and-fast rules, which they say could be difficult to implement.

Consumer groups counter that the phone companies are dragging their feet for no good reason and that, once given the green light from the FCC, could block most robocalls if they wanted.