Following last year’s federal election, the Morrison Government commissioned a review of the National Disability Insurance Service (NDIS) and the way it is managed by the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA). This report has now been released publicly and includes 29 recommendations on how to improve the program — including extending the life of funding support for recipients from two to three years if their needs are “stable”. From The ABC:
The NDIS… has long been criticised as being bogged down in red tape and bureaucracy…
“People with disability have reported frustrations about the administration of the NDIS by the NDIA,” the report stated.
“Transparency, consistency and timeliness in decision-making are critical issues and people with disability have reported poor experiences when working with NDIA staff…
The 29 recommendations include calls for more flexibility for how NDIS funds are used by recipients, measures to make funding plans easier to understand, and putting in place a “participant service guarantee” to ensure basic standards are met…
The Federal Government said it would formally respond the report in coming weeks, but it had already promised to implement longer funding plans for recipients.
As a parent of an “severe range” autistic son, we have experienced the frustrations with the NDIS first hand.
The initial application stage was a nightmare, with my son denied funding for disability services that he previously accessed without a hitch. We were not alone either, with several children that we know also rejected from the NDIS.
After a stressful appeals process, the funding was reinstated to my son. Nevertheless, our overall experience speaking to families with disabilities is that the decision making processes around NDIS funding was rather arbitrary and based on pot luck.
We also now face annual bureaucratic reviews from the NDIS, despite my son having a life-long disability and attending a special school.
Any reforms that produce more consistent and transparent outcomes, as well as implement longer funding plans for recipients, are positive.
