FOI 24/25-1296
| Scope | I now seek only the most recent document describing “the nature of the debts within the cohort, the progress and outcome of the ‘review’ or ‘further assessment’ process. |
|---|---|
| Note | Summary statement provides progress of the review and further assessment processes |
Summary Statement
The NDIA has been implementing a program of work to improve debt management. Key elements are:
- A case-by-case review of all historic and open Agency-created debts from 2020 (when the first debts were raised) until 2025.
- A strategic review of the NDIA’s debt management frameworks and processes by consultant KordaMentha.
- A range of ongoing continuous improvements to ensure consistent and confident decision-making processes with consideration for procedural fairness, participant safety, ethics, evidentiary standards and decision governance. This includes introducing an SLT Debt Panel that now endorses all new debts.
External consultants KordaMentha commenced a strategic review of debt management in January 2025. The scope of the work includes:
- Gaining a high-level understanding of the processes, policies and systems
- Stakeholder engagement including a walkthrough of processes with Agency staff
- Identification of key gaps and risks
- Identification of good practices that can be implemented within the Agency to address gaps and risks identified within the current framework
As at 31 March 2025, the NDIA had $42.6 million in Agency-created debt on hand:
- $18.5 million debt for participants (501 participants)
- $24.1 million for providers (165 providers).
In September 2024, an internal Debt Review Team including representatives from Integrity, Scheme Debt, Service Delivery, and Legal commenced a detailed review of debts. Participant debts were the initial focus given the priority of remediating any participant impacts of debts incorrectly raised.
The review of the participant debt cohort is nearing completion. 32 participant debts are still under review. These debts require further investigation, including gathering additional evidence and engaging with the debtor prior to deciding on the revised outcome. The NDIA is in the process of finalising the approach for participant debts requiring remediation. This approach is expected to be resolved by the end of August 2025.
The high-level outcomes of the participant debt review will be communicated publicly alongside direct communications with impacted participants.
The review of open and closed provider debts (387 debts totalling $57.9 million) has commenced.