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

Submission 3687

National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment Bill 2026

I am appealing to the Government to not go ahead with these amendments on the grounds that they will cause further problems for the people they are supposed to assist.

Years ago, living in a remote country town, I saw the difficulties parents experienced when they had a child with some kind of developmental delay or disability. To get assistance for that child meant a round trip of 200kms to the nearest large town, necessitating leaving other children to be cared for by someone else (as the other parent had to work). Petrol costs, meal costs & exhaustion for the parent & child. In one instance, a parent had arranged for her family to be looked after for 4 days, while she & her child, took a bus to & from Sydney & when the receptionist, rang to say could she change the date, she explained that as she lived 800kms away - it would be very difficult to change all the arrangements she had in place for her family. People in the city, often have no conceivable idea of distances in this country.

Early intervention for babies & young children is imperative to enable them to reach their potential & be able to live a full life & become a productive member of their community - instead of being relegated to the “too hard” basket thus costing community more in the long run. The lack of services in regional & country areas is yet to be addressed by all governments, if we accept that each & every person is entitles to support, to reach their full potential.

Please reconsider these amendments & re-engage with providers to understand the implications of the changes & how they will disenfranchise those they are supposed to support.

Robyn Artup