Submission
NDIS Amendment Bill 2026: Risks to Regional People with Disability
For submission to the Senate Community Affairs Legislation Committee: National Disability
Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026
(MSpEd, MSW (Q))
June 2026
Acknowledgement of Country
The authors acknowledge the traditional owners and custodians of Wathaurong Country, the land on which this submission was produced. We acknowledge this land has never been ceded and pay our respects to First Nations community members and elders.
About the Authors
is a Social Worker and Educator working closely with communities, service providers and policymakers in Regional Victoria. She is a former teacher in Victorian Specialist Schools and an experienced systemic advocate in the areas of health access and gender-based violence. is a lecturer in Disability and Inclusion at an Australian University.
is a passionate systemic advocate, and is currently a member of several working groups with that focus. has been a Women’s Health Service Peer Education Coordinator at and Council Disability Service Officer. She has worked on multiple cancer prevention programs, and was a Convenor of Women with Disabilities Victoria in the 90’s. She has been a member of WDV’s Health Experts and Gender and Diversity Experts by Experience teams. works as a Research Assistant at Australian universities and is an indictee of the Victorian Women’s Honor Roll.
Submission Contact
Key Concerns
Families and people with disability in regional Australia are already underserved by the NDIS. There are approximately 220,000 NDIS participants in regional Australia, around 30% of all NDIS participants nation-wide (Parliament of Australia, 2025). NDIS access and utilisation of planned supports is significantly lower outside of metro areas in Australia (National Rural Health Alliance, 2023). Regional people have less access to specialised services, including assessment services and allied health support than their metro counterparts. This is particularly true for multiply marginalised regional people including LGBTIQ+ people with disability, who face additional barriers to access including a lack of inclusive services (Women with Disabilities Victoria, 2025). These reforms risk deepening inequality and making access to safe, affirming and person-centred support contingent on a person’s post-code.
The National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future
Generations) Bill (2026) would change the NDIS in ways that would leave families and people with disability in regional Australia more isolated and with even less access to services they need to participate fully in the social, cultural and economic life of their communities on an equal basis with others. This Bill would allow government to reduce eligibility and supports, and force families and people with disability to into services and systems that are not yet ready or fit for purpose. Whilst the initiatives including the Inclusive Communities Fund will benefit regional families and people with disability, building the capacity of regional organisations and service-providers will take time, implementing these changes now risks leaving regional people without support (Department of Health, Disability and Aging, 2026a).
We have two key concerns for regional families and people with disability in relation to this Bill:
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Changes to eligibility risk making access to the scheme more unequal, further disadvantaging regional families and people with disability.
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Reductions in Social and Community Participation funding risk the health, wellbeing and safety of regional people with disability.
One of the key risks to families and people with disability in regional Australia is the current lack services and supports available outside of the NDIS. The Government cannot limit eligibility and reduce NDIS support funding without placing additional stress on families and impacting the safety and wellbeing of people with disability. For many, there few appropriate and accessible services available outside of the NDIS and new programs and services won’t be ready for some time.
We recommend that:
The Government withdraw the Bill until supports outside the NDIS, including Thriving Kids, are operational, available and accessible to families and people with disability in regional Australia.
The Government undertake meaningful consultation with families and people with disability in regional Australia, co-design systems of support to meet the unique needs of regional people, and address significant barriers to service access and community inclusion.
The passing of this Bill would result in substantial changes to NDIS access, planning and supports, and these would be established before needed Foundational Supports and Inclusive Community initiatives have been designed, evaluated or made available and accessible. Whilst the NDIS Review (2023) emphasised the need for systems of support outside the NDIS, it is clear that the actions and recommendations resulting from the Review are interdependent and not intended to be rolled out piecemeal and in such a way as to risk harming some of Australia’s most disadvantaged communities. The Review makes clear that a more equitable system is achieved with the implementation of a holistic package of reforms that work together
- Changes to eligibility risk making access to the scheme more unequal, further disadvantaging regional families and people with disability.
The NDIS already has inequities in access, including between people with disabilities in metropolitan areas as compared to those in regional, rural and remote Australia (National Rural Health Alliance, 2023). A major barrier to NDIS access in regional areas includes an often-critical lack of allied health professionals and skilled disability support workers. This lack of access is even more acute for multiply marginalised communities in regional and rural Australia, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with disability, and there is need of a community-based workforce to provide ongoing culturally safe support (Australian Government, 2023b). The NDIS Review (Australian Government, 2023a) identified the need for active monitoring and contingency planning to ensure the regional and rural people with disability have continuing access to essential supports. These existing barriers to access should be considered in the assessment of this Bill that proposes to tighten NDIS eligibility for people who already face significant barriers to access.
The reforms to NDIS eligibility create risk for families and people with disability in regional areas, who are likely to be left without support if current inequities in health access are not addressed. Investment in services and programs outside of the NDIS are ongoing. However, the creation and expansion of programs outside the scheme, including Thriving Kids, do not directly address skill shortages in regional areas, nor the lack disability expertise amongst healthcare professionals (Department of Health, Disability and Aging, 2026b). The Thriving Kids report identified that outside the NDIS, access to allied healthcare is inconsistent, particularly in rural and regional areas. The report highlights the role of healthcare professionals in the identification, referral and support of children eligible for of early intervention. However, the Thriving Kids report also identifies the need for training and development of staff before the program can be effectively rolled out. Time, training and targeted workforce interventions are required in order for regional families and people with disability to have equal access to intervention and support.
Changes to NDIS eligibility present particular risks to regional Australians with chronic conditions and children and young people with disabilities, as exhausting all appropriate treatment options will cost time and money many regional people simply don’t have simply. On average, regional people earn less than their metropolitan counterparts and specialised treatment and allied health support are often limited or unavailable in regional areas (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2024). The time and cost of travel is a significant barrier to care, and without appropriate support chronic conditions are likely worsen. Indeed, the potential impact on the lives of children and young people in need of individualised support may be profound, as regional families endure long hours of travel, special waiting list and long or even harmful treatment programs (Children and Young People with Disabilities, 2026). Many regional people and families cannot afford the cost of proving permanence, but the real cost will be paid by children as their most important developmental years are spent waiting not thriving.
Families and people with disability not eligible for the NDIS are currently referred to Health and Community Services with limited or no capacity in regional areas, and changes to the Scheme risk widening service gaps and leaving even more regional people without support. Services in Regional Australia are strained and struggle to meet the demand as costs, workforce constraints and infrastructure limitations impact the health of communities (Anglicare Australia, 2025). Removing NDIS supports before other supports are ready means shifting responsibility onto systems and services that are already overstretched. Regional services that exist on paper may in reality be unavailable because they due extended wait times or lack of specialist expertise. The longer families and people with disability wait for support, the more complex their support needs are likely to become over time, placing further pressure on regional Health and Community Service systems. If passed, this Bill risks compounding and entrenching disadvantage in Regional Australia.
- Reductions in Social and Community Participation funding risks the health, wellbeing and safety of regional people with disability.
The Disability Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of people
with disability (2023), found that reducing isolation and strengthening and supporting community inclusion are central to preventing violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation of people with disability. Any reduction in funding for Social and Community participation risks denying people with disability the regular contact with community that is essential to building the networks and relationships that keep people safe, protect their health and wellbeing. Regional women and other marginalised people with disability are already at higher risk of violence (Women with Disabilities, 2025), and these cuts risk worsening isolation and hampering community-led efforts to challenge ableism and prevent future violence, abuse neglect and exploitation.
The Government has acted on the need to implement stronger safeguards against violence, neglect and abuse for NDIS participants (NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission, 2026), and changes to registration requirements for certain NDIS workers and providers have been designed partly for this purpose. However, cuts to Social and Community Participation
funding risk undermining these measures, as social connection has been identified as one of the most important and effective safeguards against violence, abuse and neglect. Changing the Landscape (2022), a framework for the prevention of violence against women with disabilities, identifies being known and valued as essential to the safety of women with disabilities. Women with disabilities experience violence at higher rates and for longer periods of time than other members of the community, in part because they have less access to services including specialist family violence services with disability expertise. Lack of access is particularly acute in regional areas, making Social and Community Participation support essential to the safety of regional women with disabilities.
People with disabilities make an important contribution to social, cultural and economic life of regional communities, but transport access is a major barrier to Social and Community Participation. Regional Australia has limited public transport infrastructure and infrequent services, making support funding essential for transport to everyday activities and community events (People with Disability Australia, 2025). Without funding, people with disability in Regional Australia will be forced to rely on informal supports or left isolated from their communities. Cuts to Social and Community Participation will mean the loss of independence for man regional people with disabilities, which will effectively make people less safe and contravene Article 19 on United Nations Convention of the Rights of Persons with Disability. These cuts will undermine decades of advocacy, world-leading social policy and public health interventions, as lives become more isolated and relationships become less equal.
Health inequalities between regional and metro areas become even more important when we consider the impact of isolation on the mental health and wellbeing of people with disability. Cuts to funding of Social and Community Participation supports will have direct impact on the mental health of people with disability in regional areas, as community connections are lost and participation in education, work and leisure becomes more challenging. Peer support also plays a role in supporting wellbeing, positive self-concept and personal development that enables community contribution (Our Watch and Women with Disabilities Victoria, 2022). Cuts to NDIS supports directly undermine initiatives including the Disability Peer Support and Connections Program, with regional participants likely to experience barriers including lack of transport options and access to digital infrastructure. Peer-support empowers people and promotes Pride, countering the negative stereotypes prevalent in regional Australia. Funding for Social and Community Participation is an investment in the health and wellbeing of this and future generations of Australians.
This Bill’s narrow focus on cost savings is short-sighted and seeks to shift responsibility for care and support onto families and services that are either inappropriate, inaccessible or don’t exist at all. The short timeframe for consultation prevents meaningful engagement with regional families and people with disability and proper analysis and mitigation of risk. This Bill should not progress, and families and people with disability in Regional Australia should be provided with the time and support needed to meaningfully voice their concerns and communicate their needs. No cuts to individual funding should be made until supports outside the NDIS are operational, available and accessible. To do so not only risks the
independence, safety and wellbeing of regional people with disability and their families, but could also result in generational disadvantage as people with disability again become isolated and unequal members of regional communities after decades of progress towards the full and equal participation of people with disability in Australian life.
References
Anglicare Australia (2025). In every community: Delivering services outside our cities. file:///C:/Users/granl/Downloads/REPORT-In-Every-Community.pdf
Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2024, July 10). Disability, aging and carers Australia: Summary of findings, 2022. https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/health/disability/disability-ageing-and-carers australia-summary-findings/latest-release
Australian Government. (2023a). NDIS review final report: Working together to deliver the NDIS. https://www.ndisreview.gov.au/resources/reports/working-together-deliver ndis/
Australian Government. (2023b). NDIS review: First nations communities. https://www.ndisreview.gov.au/resources/fact-sheet/first-nations-communities
Children and Young People with Disability (2025, December). Masking is not thriving: Views of children and young people with disability, parents and caregivers on Thriving Kids: Summary of survey responses collected September 2025. https://cyda.org.au/wp content/uploads/2025/12/REP_ThrivingKidsSurvey_Final_20251204.pdf
Department of Health, Disability and Aging. (2026a). Securing the NDIS for future generations. https://www.health.gov.au/our-work/ndis-legislation changes/amendments/securing-the-ndis-for-future-generations
Department of Health, Disability and Aging. (2026b). Thriving kids advisory group final report. https://www.health.gov.au/resources/publications/thriving-kids-advisory group-final-report?language=en
National Rural Health Alliance.(2023). Disability and access to the NDIS in rural Australia. https://www.ruralhealth.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/nrha-disability-factsheet feb-2023-final.pdf
NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission (2026, May 27). Mandatory registration. https://www.ndiscommission.gov.au/about-us/ndis-commission-reform hub/mandatory-registration
Our Watch, & Women with Disabilities Victoria. (2022). Changing the landscape: A national resource to prevent violence against women and girls with disabilities. https://www.ourwatch.org.au/change-the-story/changing-the-landscape
Parliament of Australia. (2025). Joint standing committee of the National Disability Insurance Scheme: NDIS participant experience in rural, regional and remote Australia. https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Joint/National_Disabilit y_Insurance_Scheme/RuralRegionalRemote_48th/Report/Chapter_2_ _NDIS_participants_in_rural_regional_and_remote_Australia
Parliament of Australia. (2026). National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment Bill.
National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future
Generations) Bill 2026 – Parliament of Australia
People with Disability Australia (2025, February 28). Submission to NSW Government strategic regional integrated transport plans. https://pwd.org.au/wp content/uploads/2025/02/Regional-Transport-plans-Final.pdf
Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability. (2023). Final report- Executive summary: Our vision for an inclusive Australia and recommendations. https://disability.royalcommission.gov.au/publications/final-report executive-summary-our-vision-inclusive-australia-and-recommendations
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Women with Disabilities Victoria (2026). Facts on violence against LGBTIQ+ people with disabilities. https://wdv.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/FINAL-Facts-on