National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026

Submission 1430

Submission to the Senate Community Affairs Legislation Committee** **Inquiry Into

the National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the Ndis For Future generations) bill 2026* Submitted By: redacted Tasmania Australia

I am an AuDHD adult And parent To two autistic daughters. I Am writing this submission because iAm deeply concerned about The impact of proposed ndis reforms could Have On My family AND ON disabled People across australia.My Family lives with cumulative disability load, floating capacity ANd ongoing burnout management.None Of our disabilities exist neatly in isolation from one another,and Our support Needs Are Not static.Our ability TO function changes depending on stress,sensory Load,burnout levels environmental demands social expectationsAndThe level OF Support availableTo us at any given time.The flexibility currently Available within OUR nDis plans Is OneOf THE few things that has genuinely allowed Us to move beyond survival mode.the supports we access are not luxuries.They ARE the reason WeAre ableto participate In work school community and daily life safelyand sustainably.Before thenDis,we were barely surviving.We got through Work and School had almost no Capacity left for anything else. WE WERE overloaded isolated chronically exhausted Constantly tryingtorecoverfromburnout.since accessingthenDISWeare more regulatedmore connected toourcommunityMore Able tobetainworkandschoolparticipationAND More ABle tOfunction as afamily.Flexible Access totosupport worker assistance For Social anda Community participation Has significantly reducedIsolation and increasedOur Ability toeNgagewiththe world aroundus.Autism-specific psychologyHas been lifechangingfor both myself And my daughter.These Supports have helped US better understand oureneds improve emotional regulation develop healthier relationships AND build sustainable coping strategies. Flexible Short Term Accommodation HAS also Been essentialIn preventing autistic burnout overload.It functions As A preventativeSupportthat helps maintain stability Reduces The likelihood of crisis.Consistency Of supportaccess is criticalFor Autistic people ANd families.Stability reduces cognitive load stressAnd dysregulation.constant policy shifts changing interpretations And repeated reassessments create enormous distress Uncertainty.OneOfThe best experiencesWEhad withThenDIs Was when My children’s plans Were simply rolled over because THE existing supportswere already working well.it avoided unnecessary retraumatisation Reduced an Enormous amount OF Stress.my own plan Is due FOR reassessment in Septemberand I genuinely do not know ifI Have the capacitytosurvive another planning process.The previous Plan development Process for MYself AnDMYchildren was appalling.I had To repeatedly insist on face-to-face meetings Insist On having Support present. i encountered ablest attitudes throughoutTHEprocessAND felt continually dismissed disbelieved untili became so overwhelmed that IBurst into tears.only then wereMy needs finally taken seriously and appropriatesupports provided.Disabled People should Not haveto emotionally collapse before they are believed.Repeated reassessment processes Are NOT neutral administrative tasks.They ARE cognitively exhaustingemotionally draining And oftenretraumatising particularlyfor

National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026

Submission 1430 autistic people who already experience significant difficulty navigating complex bureaucratic systems. These processes also fundamentally fail to capture fluctuating disability. Many autistic and neurodivergent people can appear “capable” in short interactions while masking distress, exhaustion and dysfunction. Being able to speak on the phone, to attend a meeting or complete paperwork does not mean somebody does not require support. Functioning is contextual, inconsistent and often achieved at enormous personal cost. I have personally experienced ableist assumptions from NDIA staff. On one occasion, an NDIA staff member told me that because I was able to speak on the phone, therefore did not need support coordination funding. This completely ignored the actual reasons requested support coordination demonstrated fundamental misunderstanding of autism executive functioning difficulties fluctuations capacity The system repeatedly reduces disability simplistic observations ignoring hidden labour disabled person functional constant changes within are another major source distress Policies interpretations practices change constantly without notice clear communication Different participants different things about what they cannot access similar disabilities similar funding Support coordinators provide conflicting information Plan managers provide conflicting information depending day this inconsistency creates cognitive emotional load disabled families struggling navigate highly complex system Communication systems agency time consuming cognitively draining involves endless loops little outcome burden these systems falls disproportionately onto disabled family carers overloaded alarming lack advocacy available Tasmania independent advocacy assist workplace NDIS issues systemic barriers forced advocate myself children simultaneously managing disability parenting work responsibilities burnout unpaid Labour As mother much created by failures ultimately back expectations become particularly women mothers absorb gap unsustainable proposed reforms risk shifting more responsibility natural supports which reality means female labour Women already carrying caring responsibilities advocacy work emotional administrative crisis management disability systems governments reduce formal supports eliminate needs simply transfer labour stress economic consequences families Without current would likely be reduced my hours again due autistic burnout caregiving demands ability maintain full-time employment directly connected our currently accessing including psychology domestic assistance and worker support Reducing does increase independence many cases it actively reduces

National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026

Submission 1430

The reforms also fail to adequately consider regional and semi-remote realities. We live in a semi-remote area with very limited provider availability.

National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026

Submission 1430 difficulties, sensory impacts, relational support needs and the real-world consequences of unsupported disability. There are also serious concerns regarding expanded ministerial rule-making powers and the increasing ability for supports to be restricted or redefined through policy interpretation rather than through transparent legislation and individualised evidence. Disabled people require certainty, stability and procedural fairness. We should not be living in constant fear that supports may suddenly become inaccessible because of changing interpretations, internal policy shifts or discretionary decision-making processes. There is also widespread concern regarding safeguarding, accountability and access to review rights. When NDIA decisions are inconsistent, inaccessible or incorrect, participants must retain strong access to internal reviews, external appeals and independent oversight mechanisms. Disabled people should not lose rights to procedural fairness simply because systems is overloaded or governments are seeking administrative efficiency. For many participants, review and appeal pathways are the only safeguards preventing harmful, unlawful or poorly informed decisions from causing catastrophic consequences. Weakening review rights or creating barriers to external appeals risks leaving disabled people trapped within systems that already hold enormous power over every aspect of our lives.I am also deeply concerned about the broader long-term direction these reformsmay take Australia toward.When disabled people lose individualisedsupports,the outcomesarenotincreasedindependenceor inclusion.Theoutcomesoften:

• increased isolation
• increased family breakdown
• worsening mental health school disengagement unemployment poverty burnout crisis presentations and greater reliance on segregated,institutionalorrestrictive models ofsupportManydisabledAustraliansfoughtfordecadestomoveawayfromsystemsthatisolateddisabledpeoplefromcommunitylifeandanonymityTheNDISwasintendedtosupportparticipation,dignitychoiceandinclusion.Anyreformsthatreduceflexibility,narroweligibilityincreasegatekeepingorshiftresponsibilitontounsupportedfamilysrisk reversingthatsprogress.Disabledpeopledeservetolivewithinthecommunitieswithsafety, autonomy dignityandgenuinesupport:notbepushedbacktowardsurvival-based,crisis-drivenoregregatedsystemsbecauseappropriatesupportshavestriped away.Ifthesereformresultsinfurtercuts, narrowingofsupportsexceededassessmentpowers or reduced flexibilitytheconsequences for my familys will be severe. Withoutour supports:mychildrenwouldbecome increasinglyschool avoidant ourmentalhealth and emotional regulation would deteriorate autisticburnouts woul ds significantly increase we would become more isolated from community participation

*I would likely be unable to maintain full-time employment *the unpaid caring burden on me would dramatically increase *our family stability would deteriorate *we would lose preventative supports that currently stop crisis before it occurs. These supports do not create dependence.Theycreate sustainability,participationand safety.Removing them willnot eliminatedisabilityorsupport needs.Itwill simply push morefamilies intoburnout,crisis,isolationandpovertywhileshifting greater pressureonto health systems,schools,familiesandinformalcarers.I urgethecommitteto carefully consider thereal-world impacts these reforms wilhaveondisabledpeopleand familiesparticularlyautisticpeoplenowomenparents regional participantsandr peoplewithfluctuatin gorinvisible disabilitie s.I urgetheCommitteet o: *protectparticipant choiceanda ndcontrol

• protectflexibleuseofsupports reduce repeated reassessmentandevidentiarydemands improveconsistency anda ccountabiltywithinNDIAdecisionmaking improvecommunicationaccessibility cr e a nceaccessto independentadvocacy recognise fluctuating and invisible disability appropriately pro tect accessto trusted providers, particularly inregionala ndsemi-remoteareas recognizethegenderedimpacts of shifting careresponsibilities onto famil ies ensurereformsalignwith human rights principlesan dtheintento f the NDIS protec tp reventativesuppor ts that reducburnou tc risis an dl ong-term system costs safeguarding mechanisms procedural fairness protections maintain strong accesstointernal reviewsandexternal appeals ensureministerialpowerscannotoverride participantrightsandi ndividualised evidence prevent narrowing eligibility pathways for people with complex fluctuations or invisibledisabilities ensur edisableddiopleare genuinely includedin co-designadecision-making processes Disabled peopleshouldnothave to fight this hardtosurvive. Regards, redacted