Emma Husar (Lindsay, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

(1) acknowledges that the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS):

(a) supports a better life for hundreds of thousands of Australians with a significant and permanent disability, and their families and carers; and

(b) will provide about 460,000 Australians under the age of 65 with a permanent and significant disability with the reasonable and necessary supports they need to live an ordinary life;

(2) notes that:

(a) the NDIS began in a number of trial sites around Australia from July 2013;

(b) the NDIS is now operational across Australia;

(c) as at 31 December 2017, there were 132,743 participants with an approved plan with the NDIS and 9,523 children receiving support through the Early Childhood Early Intervention approach; and

(d) the NDIS roll-out in Western Australia will commence 1 July 2018;

(3) calls on the Government to urgently address delays and inadequacies in the NDIS operations and roll-out, including:

(a) funding adequacy and access to the scheme;

(b) NDIS plan approvals and plan renewals;

(c) access to adequate health services, care and supports, housing and other essential services; and

(d) ensuring that the pricing structure of the NDIS enables service providers to deliver high quality support to participants in the scheme including for group activities that are being threatened by the current model;

(4) reaffirms its commitment to:

(a) ensuring Australians with a disability continue to get the support they need;

(b) the scheme roll-out continuing to ensure a smooth transition for people with disability and support providers; and

(c) an adequately funded and resourced NDIS; and

(5) encourages all Members of Parliament to support the NDIS roll-out and the access to support it provides to people with disability.

The NDIS is something that Labor members of this caucus and of previous caucuses are incredibly proud of. It is something that I am incredibly proud of and, arguably, it is one of the things that ignited my passion for politics and finding a pathway into this place. It was Labor that fought for and introduced the NDIS that would transform the lives of people with a disability and make sure that they were able to achieve the level of independence that many of us here take for granted. We left office in 2013, with a plan to fully fund the NDIS for the next 10 years. This budget is a clear admission that the National Disability Insurance Scheme has always been fully funded. This is a massive embarrassment for the Prime Minister and the Treasurer, who have spent years and years fuelling the anxiety of people with a disability and their carers by telling them that the NDIS is in some kind of danger, that it is not fully funded or that, as a country, we cannot afford it. An elderly couple in my electorate, who have a son in residential care, came to see me. They're incredibly old now and they worry about his life when they pass away. This is the case for many people. With the droning and constant squealing of the Treasurer that the NDIS isn't fully funded, they were terrified that their son's future was being placed at considerable risk. It takes an exceptional type of cruelty and of being so out-of-touch to do this to families. This makes me even more committed to holding this government and its weak-as-water rhetoric to account.

Currently, there are about 142,000 participants with an approved plan who are accessing the NDIS, which includes about 9,500 children receiving support through the Early Childhood Early Intervention, ECEI, approach. An estimated half a million people under the age of 65 will finally receive the care and support that they have been waiting for so long to receive. The Commonwealth Ombudsman raised concerns about the timeliness of reviews in its report issued last week. It stated:

Of particular concern is the issue of delays in completing reviews. In February 2018, the NDIA advised our Office it had around 8,100 reviews on hand, and it was receiving around 620 new review requests each week. The NDIA has acknowledged some reviews are taking up to nine months to be completed.

We cannot afford to stumble on the implementation of the NDIS. It is a groundbreaking scheme. It is a system, a policy and a piece of infrastructure that will change people's lives; it will create an absolutely tangible difference. Fundamentally, this NDIS is a once-in-a-generation reform package, similar to what we had when we introduced Medicare many years ago.

My office has become an NDIS de facto office and shopfront, with people contacting me every single day about their inadequate plans, about the reviews, about needing help or advocacy and also about the staff who mean well but who are, unfortunately, not trained. Take, for example, Tracey, who resides in Penrith, with her husband and their 13-year-old son, Bradley. Tracey has voiced her concerns and frustrations about resources and funding of the NDIS multiple times. Her son Bradley is severely disabled. He was diagnosed with cerebral palsy. He has severe spinal scoliosis, is non-verbal and is wheelchair-bound. Tracey is the kind of mother this country should be applauding. So this government should not be running around fuelling her anxiety about what's to come. Tracy is Bradley's full-time carer, and his dad works six days a week to provide what their family needs. Bradley is non-verbal, as I said, and he has been waiting 20 months for communication aids. That's 20 months. I'm not quite sure what the delay is, but we've asked and we've asked and we've asked. He would be one of those 8,000 people who are waiting for a review. The response continues to be 'It's being reviewed.' He's due for surgery in September for a spine fusion. He's going to need a shower trolley. Imagine that! He's going to have spinal surgery. It is 11 months since that request was made. The wheelchair has been approved, which is a small win, but it will take three months to get it from America.

A single mum in my electorate who contacted me has two children, a six-year-old and an eight-year-old, who have both been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. She contacted me, pleading that, under the current NDIS budget, she's concerned for the wellbeing of her kids. The care plans in place for the children are inadequate and will not fund the critical support services that they need. Her son attends behavioural therapy, and mum has noticed significant improvements, as we do. The core budget gives this family some room to hire additional support at home. Without this, she will struggle to manage. Her request for a review has been lodged; however, it will be some months before it's considered.

Briefly, I would like to acknowledge the news in the media in recent days about the National Disability Insurance Agency's categorisation of autism. Both the NDIA and the government must work with stakeholders to make sure that the NDIS delivers for people who have autism spectrum disorder and must not through some kind of cost-saving exercise make it harder for people with autism. People with autism account for about a third of the participants accessing the NDIS, and a further third will. I am incredibly disappointed with the NDIA's handling of this issue in recent days. It has been poorly managed. It is so typical of this government to bungle anything. Quite frankly, I don't think it can be trusted to deliver a pizza at this rate, let alone a life-changing opportunity for hundreds of decent Australians.

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