VICTORIA\u2019S Public Advocate has called for significant reforms to the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) to ensure it delivers the intended transformational benefits for all Australians with a disability.<\/p>\n
The call for action follows the release of a report, The Illusion of \u2018choice and control\u2019, published by the Office of the Public Advocate (OPA) last month.<\/p>\n
The report, which draws on 12 case studies of OPA clients, demonstrates the significant human impact and harm caused when people receive inadequate supports under the NDIS, which (as of last month) has been rolled out to nearly 200,000 Australians \u2013 nearly a third of which had never received state or government support before.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese clients have complex and challenging support needs and are not seeing the benefits the NDIS was intended to offer,\u201d Dr Pearce said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWithout strong advocacy, many are not getting the access to the scheme. When they do, the planning, services and accommodation provided are often inadequate or unsuitable.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThese challenges can have detrimental, sometimes devastating, consequences for the person.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn many instances, delayed or inadequate supports and poor quality services lead to avoidable detention and other infringements on their human rights and significantly compromise their ability to achieve their chosen goals.<\/p>\n
For them, the \u2018choice and control\u2019 that the NDIS promised is an illusion.\u201d<\/p>\n
The report makes 15 recommendations to improve crisis response, accommodation and navigation of \u201cthin markets\u201d where there are no providers willing and able to provide services to people with complex and challenging support needs.<\/p>\n
It calls on the NDIS to:
\n\u2022 Identify and adequately resource providers of last resort
\n\u2022 Ensure providers employ staff who have specialised experience, skill and expertise to meet the needs of participants, and
\n\u2022 Ensure participants\u2019 plans have contingency funding to respond to crises.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese issues will potentially escalate in scale and impact with the full NDIS rollout unless significant and effective actions are taken immediately,\u201d Dr Pearce said.<\/p>\n
To read the report, head to publicadvocate.vic.gov.au.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
VICTORIA\u2019S Public Advocate has called for significant reforms to the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) to ensure it delivers the intended transformational benefits for all Australians with a disability. The call for action follows the release of a report, The Illusion of \u2018choice and control\u2019, published by the Office of the Public Advocate (OPA) last […]<\/p>\n