National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026
Submission 49
I am a disability support worker for multiple individuals, all of whom have expressed to me that they would be negatively impacted by the proposed changes to the NDIS, in ways that would significantly impact their wellbeing. One person I support said the following:
“I am a high support needs power wheelchair user and use a speech device to communicate. I have no family I can rely on for my support needs. I have experienced so much discrimination, infantilisation, neglect and abuse from registered support providers, leaving me with considerable trauma. I have now built a good life for myself through NDIS funding and most importantly the choice in how to use funds to best support my needs, by building my own team of unregistered support workers that come from my community. I am queer and I used to face constant discrimination from registered support providers because of this, causing me to feel unseen and unsafe in my own home. But what I found more detrimental to my mental and physical health was the infantilisation, neglect and abuse. The registered support providers did this through: improper induction of their workers, poor communication across the board and poor treatment of their workers which leads to poor treatment of us. All of this leading to a high turnover of workers which in turn leads to its own problems. It’s awful because this treatment makes you feel not human anymore. And they gave me no choice in who supported me. It’s horrible torture having someone you didn’t choose touching your body. Every registered support provider has done this to me. It was only when I could get my own unregistered support workers that I was free from this discrimination, infantilisation, neglect and abuse. My team of support workers are all unregistered sole traders, and because of this I have the ability to carefully choose who supports me. The hours I have are greatly needed as my support needs are high. Now I’m able to have my home cleaned properly, I am able to keep myself clean and healthy, I eat properly now and I can be part of my community. I’m so afraid of losing my team, through cuts and/or mandatory registration. My health and quality of life would greatly suffer. Even if I’m not effected by these cuts I’m afraid of many other people with disabilities having to suffer like I suffered. And I’m also afraid of the media portrayal of as us people with disabilities, I’m afraid to go out in public more now incase I experience more discrimination. When the NDIS Amendments bill first went through in 2024, and the public discussion that surrounded it, I was approached at my local shops by a man who questioned how much my power wheelchair cost, and I have experienced so much hate online targeting my disability since the recent NDIS media attention. I didn’t experience this online behaviour before. Why can’t they they tax the rich and gas, they would make a lot of money off that, far more than they would cutting people’s NDIS funding. Yes they have to stop the fraud, but they are not going do that by cutting our lives and taking away our right to choose who touches our bodies. I implore you to stop the cuts to the NDIS and stop mandatory registration.
National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026
Submission 49
I agree with the above statement, that cutting peoples funding, including community access, and mandatory registration for support workers, is a mistake. Anyone who is connected to or works closely with people with disabilities in knows more funding, support and resources are urgently needed, not less. It is disappointing to witness how the government is approaching this situation, scapegoating some of the most vulnerable people in our society.
Thank you,