National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026
Submission 90
National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future
Generations) Bill 2026
I am a registered psychologist and have my own private practice. I predominately work with neurodivergent children who have diagnoses of autism and ADHD. Autism and ADHD are life long diagnoses. There is no ‘cure’. Supports assist clients to live a happy and fulfilling life. It supports their wellbeing and allows them to make sense of living in neurotypical world that is not made for them. The Minister talks about ‘low to moderate support needs’. This language is not neuro affirming. There is no low level autism. Autism support needs fluctuate on a daily, weekly, monthly and yearly basis.
The majority of my clients have NDIS funding. It was not easy for them to get funding, despite what the press is saying. It was a stressful and complex process. The clients I see often do not have enough funding to see me, as well as their other supports, on a regular basis. On occasion a client will do a change of circumstance review in order to get the funding that will support their needs due to not having enough funding. The press and the Minister are implying that these reviews are unnecessary. I disagree with this. It is a complex and stressful situation to go to a review and no client would want to put themselves through that without good reason.
I am not currently a NDIS registered provider. This was a decision I had to make due the cost of registering. As a sole trader I could not afford the thousands of dollars that it costs to go through the registration process. If the bill goes through and I am required to be registered through NDIS, I will not be able to continue supporting my NDIS clients. The maximum NDIS fee that I can charge is $232.99 an hour. I currently only charge $210 an hour in order to make it more cost effective for my clients to see me. AAPi’s recommended rate for a psychologist is $340 which is well below what I am charging. I fail to see how I am price gouging.
If my clients are pushed off the NDIS, they will likely not be able to afford to see me through Medicare or privately. The gap fee through Medicare would not be sustainable for families, nor the full private fee. Medicare focuses on mental health. The clients I see are not seeing me for mental health issues. The majority of my clients come from a single parent household. Medicare only covers rebates for 10 sessions a year. This falls considerably short of the fortnightly sessions that my clients require. For psychology to be effective, a client needs to have at least fortnightly appointments.
It takes time and patience to establish and build a rapport with neurodivergent children. If my clients are pushed off NDIS and can no longer see me, they will have to start again with another therapist. This means a considerable regression for my clients. The majority of my clients are homeschooled. This has been a difficult decision for the families but a necessary one as their children were experiencing autistic burnout due to sensory overwhelm and the school not being able to provide necessary adjustments and supports. If children are taken off NDIS and the alternative is a program run through schools, the clients I see who are homeschooled will not get access to the program. This will leave these children with no therapeutic supports.