National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026 Submission 1122
Introduction
My name is , I am 67 years old and I have been caring for my son since he was born 31 years ago. He has Down syndrome, and some other related issues, and also has an additional diagnosis of anxiety and depression. He is a NDIS participant. We live in , a small town of approx. 12,000 people in central Victoria.
My experience of the NDIS
The NDIS has been transformational for my son and our family. My son’s NDIS goals are as follows:
I want to continue to live as independently as possible
I want to improve my skills and ability to look after myself
I want to continue social and artistic activities in the community
I want help to get and do a job.
My son has used his increased social and community participation and social community and participation funding to build a useful, and purposeful life. This a short description of some aspects of his life.
- He has a permanent part time job
- He is a successful artist, holding regular exhibitions, and submitted a painting into the Archibald prize this year.
- He has a show on our local community radio Main FM, and is a regular contributor to another.
- He is living successfully outside the family home with a housemate
He uses minimal NDIS funding to achieve these outcomes, but that funding is VITAL to his current success and happiness in life. He has support from carefully chosen independent support workers with knowledge and skills in his goal areas. He is achieving his goals.
During COVID in 2020-21, all my son’s regular activities ceased, and he was unable to use his NDIS funding for his goals. His response to this situation was to stop getting up in the morning, because there was ‘nothing to do’, and he developed anxiety and depression, which he is still impacted by today.
My concerns about the Bill
Cutting social and community participation and therapy funding indiscriminately across the board.
My son’s use of NDIS funds is mainly social and community participation funding. He spends little on personal care, needs no equipment, and uses only a little allied health funding. So that category of NDIS funding is very important to him.
As explained above, when those supports ceased during COVID, he developed anxiety and depression, and stopped getting out of bed. He became very sad, and regressed in many areas. I fear the same will happen if his activities are reduced by this amendment bill.
It is very unfair, mean and completely unjustified to penalise participants and their families this way.
I am sure the same situation is true of many other participants with an intellectual disability.
National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026 Submission 1122
The end result will be that people with intellectual disabilities become more disabled, less independent, which will ultimately cost the government and tax payers more money.
There will be a knock-on effect for families who will be less able to go to work, less able to look after their own health and wellbeing and less able to care for other family members.
What should happen instead?
Instead of penalising people with disability and their families, there is lot that can be done to save money and improve the running of the NDIS.
- Fraud and rorting- this is being done mostly by large registered providers who see the inefficiencies of the NDIS and view vulnerable families as an opportunity for a cash grab, with little oversight or investigation by the agency. This needs to be stopped.
- Internal inefficiencies within the NDIS are currently a major waste of money. For example, expensive and time consuming reports by allied health practitioners are requested by the agency but are then never read or acted upon, poor planning procedures result in inaccurate and useless plans that need to be changed, and no clear information or explanation from the agency about an individual’s plan id provided etc. etc.
Conclusion
I am appreciative that we have the NDIS in Australia and until recently I was proud of our scheme in comparison with other countries. However, with these reforms you risk throwing out the baby with the bath water by stripping away all the best parts of the NDIS and attacking the people that should be protected – vulnerable people with disabilities and their families. You also risk becoming deeply unpopular in the eyes of the Australian public.
I do not support the bill as it currently stands.
, parent