The inaugural chair of the agency running the National Disability Insurance Scheme has emphasised the importance of his board’s independence and experience in the disability sector, as he prepares to leave the role.
Bhajan Kaur has been living in Melbourne with her family ever since they moved from Singapore to Australia in 2008. But now, this close-knit family is faced with a real prospect of being torn apart because of Ms Kaur’s intellectual disability.
To say it’s been a tough year for everyone in the sector is an understatement. Earlier this year providers were left unpaid by the new MyPlace portal. People were unable to access services. Some parents were harassed by debt collectors.
The program formerly known as External Merits Review – Support Component (EMR-SC) has changed its name to NDIS Appeals. NDIS Appeals has been set up to ensure that all people with disability, and others affected by reviewable decisions of the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA), have access to support when they are seeking review of those decisions … Continued
The NDIS will eventually replace a range of Commonwealth funded disability programs. NDIS participants will be able to access equivalent services through the NDIS when it is available in their area. See the link below for a list of programs that will soon be transitioned.
The second part of the NDIS is about to roll-out around the country, and it’s all about building inclusive communities.
Disability advocates – who all emphasised their strong support for the NDIS – said the agency managing the scheme was under enormous pressure to sign up participants in an unrealistic timeframe, and with inadequate federal funding. As a result, plans for Victorians with complex disabilities are being drawn up by planners with insufficient expertise, they say.
Disability advocates are ramping up calls for the National Disability Insurance Scheme to reverse a decision on the way it handles payments to participants. From July 1 the agency that administers the scheme stopped giving people a month’s payment in advance, instead asking participants to obtain receipts and claim money back.
Leaked documents reveal a number of corporate heavyweights will be appointed instead. That’s sparked fears the government may be trying to seize control of the $22 billion scheme in order to cut its funding. Among the casualties is the chairman Bruce Bonyhady, known as the ‘grandfather’ of the NDIS. He joins Fran Kelly on RN Breakfast.
The implementation of the NDIS must ensure equity in availability and accessibility of support that will respond to the needs and choices of participants from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds. It is also imperative that the cultural rights of people with disability are recognised and accommodated within the Scheme.
Getting a morning coffee on the way to work is a ritual many of us take for granted. Not Jeremy, who is a young man with a communication disability. The thought of not only being able to order coffee, but run a business, was a pipe dream. Until the National Disability Insurance Scheme arrived in Lake Macquarie.
Jordanne Taylor is a typical year 9 student. The 15-year-old loves dancing, cooking and spending time with girls her own age, watching movies and just hanging out. Until recently, these simple activities were not always easy to organise for Jordanne, who has a mild intellectual disability and is on the autism disorder spectrum.
When you pay for a product or service yourself, as an NDIS participant, or through your state or territory’s disability support system – you have consumer rights. Australia’s consumer protection agencies have produced a range of educational materials to help you understand your consumer rights and to help you use these rights if something you … Continued
Other things being equal, what’s there not to like about introducing more choice and competition in areas in which governments fund and/or deliver human services? That’s the starting point of the PC’s recently commenced inquiry into competition and choice in human services.
Minister for Social Services and Disability Services Christian Porter has announced a review of the National Disability Insurance Scheme’s IT system after claims the system has been a “debacle”.