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

Submission 2035

Submission on the NDIS Amendment Bill

I am a disabled person, family member/carer and peer worker in the mental health sector. I have also been an independent disability support worker for 4 years.

I have a variety of personal connections to this issue. I’m disabled myself, with POTS, migraines, autism and mental health issues. I’m not on the NDIS currently, but I’ve been hopeful that it would be a safety net if I get sicker again and become unable to care for myself again.

I am a carer in both my personal and professional lifes. My mum and sister both have complex mental and physical health issues, and I have helped care for them for much of my life. After a significant crisis a few years ago, my sister got NDIS and DSP supports and this has really changed both of our lives. Her ability to access great psychological supports and a support worker has meant that I no longer have to be her primary carer.

I work as a peer worker in a mental health service and an independent support worker. during this time, I’ve witnessed both the failings and wins of the NDIS and public mental health systems.

Overall, I oppose this bill, as I believe it will weaken the NDIS and make it significantly more difficult for people to access or continue to receive support.

My main concerns about this bill are loss and reduction of supports including community participation. I am also concerned about the increased administrative burden for participants and support workers.

In my time working as a support worker, I have been able to contribute meaningfully to improving people’s quality of life and participation in the community. I worked for two years with a particular participant, a lovely woman in her late 50s who was new to the NDIS. For the first time in her life, she had support to travel to the shops, go to her local community centre, and bake sweets at home. She constantly told me how much the NDIS had changed her life. Despite this, she had a significant burder to renew her plan regularly, even though her conditions were chronic. I have concerns that this bill would reduce access to meaningful community participation and make it more difficult for people to renew their supports.

As an independent worker, I am flexible to work meaningfully with a participant and their plan manager in a way that suits them. The benefit to me as a worker is that I don’t have to sacrifice any of my earnings to a middle manager. The benefit to my participants is that they are able to find a worker who suits them, and use their funding in the most meaningful ways possible.

While this bill claims to ‘preserve the NDIS for future generations’, in reality it will do anything but. The politicians claim that people are taking advantage of the system, but getting on the NDIS is extremely difficult, even for people who have disabilities that are significantly impacting their lives. My sister, for example, was hospitalised and unable to work or care for herself when

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

Submission 2035

Her first application for the NDIS was denied. She was only approved after a lengthy fight and expensive assessments, which most people would struggle to afford.

I am concerned that removing the ability for people to appeal will make the NDIS less equitable and prevent the people who need it most from accessing it.

My position is that this bill should not pass. Disabled people need a stronger NDIS with greater access, not the flimsy, inaccessible version that this bill proposes.