National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Getting the NDIS Back on Track No. 1) Bill 2024 [Provisions]
Submission 114
Submission to NDIS for the proposed changes
The proposed changes wish to distinguish which diagnoses impact will be covered by the ndis and which will not be covered. This clarification is something a doctor would find difficult or impossible let alone an administrative staff member. Disabilities and health problems all impact each other, interact and overlap. When a disability and a health condition both cause a symptom, under the new framework - the NDIA could defer responsibility to the health system as it isn’t an accepted impairment despite an accepted condition also causing the symptom. Not to mention that proving access for each and every disability is unrealistic and extremely expensive for the system and individual. The wording of the legislation to allow funding for resources to get participants in the community is insane. Should someone leave the house hungry, unshowered, no catheter placed (so urine is leaking everywhere), no pad in place, naked (as can’t dress themselves) and smelling like a dirty house? No! Of course not! Should a participant have to live with blood on the floor? Urine? Faeces? Why should the ndis not cover services and support within the home?
This phrasing of the legislation will have catastrophic complications. The new wording of the legislation provides so much power to the CEO and takes so much control and support from the participant. In many ways but most significantly the mysterious needs assessment and the inability to appeal the decisions made! Why should we trust an assessment we know nothing about? Did a large team of professionals write this? Does this team have an understanding of every disability on the planet? Does this team understand how to apply a one size fits all to every disability on the planet? You see how ridiculous it sounds right? Removing participants ability to appeal is horrific. What if they are a victim of a nasty office administrator with no training who lies on the form? What then! Must they suffer needlessly until they get a new plan? This is insanity at its finest! Further! The new legislation wants to have a yes and no list for things that can be funded. This is insane for many reasons as again - does the committee deciding this understand every single disability perfectly? I doubt it! Some things are considered luxuries for normal people such as a robot vacuum or a thermomix but very essential for disabled people to reduce the need for expensive support hours. Over time this saves the NDIS money. This is a very short sighted approach to the situation. The real “blow out” of the NDIA comes from unnecessary plan reassessments, poorly written plans and inappropriately supported people. Needing people to collect thousands of dollars worth of reports is insane to keep proving their disability. Plan reassessments should not be annual or even biannually. They should only be done when a participant’s situation changes. Too many planners assume disabled people’s needs will decline over time. When you’re dealing with a population of people who have proven permanent disabilities this is unreasonable. It should be expected to stay the same or get worse. Poorly written plans or inappropriate plans are extremely expensive as they cause deterioration of the participant, loss of supports, changes in routine and more that contribute to participants decline. Not to mention the effects of the stress of these situations.
National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Getting the NDIS Back on Track No. 1) Bill 2024 [Provisions]
Submission 114
To conclude. Everything you’ve written needs to be thrown out and the government needs to engage in true codesign with disabled people.