Provide life-changing outcomes for future generations of Australians with disability.
A sustainable growth trajectory for the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) is critical for its long-term viability, ensuring it can continue to provide life-changing outcomes for future generations of Australians with disability. As a first step towards ensuring a sustainable NDIS, the Government will provide $732.9 million over 4 years from 2023-24 to support participant outcomes and the effective and sustainable operation of the Scheme. Funding includes: * $429.5 million over 4 years from 2023-24 to invest in the National Disability Insurance Agency's (NDIA's) capability and systems, to improve processes and planning decisions * $73.4 million over 4 years from 2023-24 to better support participants to manage their plan within budget, including assistance from NDIA during the year and holding plan managers, support coordinators and providers to account * $63.8 million over two years from 2023-24 to take a lifetime approach to ensure plans are more transparent and flexible for life events * $56.4 million over 4 years from 2023-24 to strengthen supported independent living decisions, including by introducing a home and living panel with highly trained staff to improve consistency across decisions and updating guidelines for planners to improve participants' ability to live independently * $48.3 million over two years from 2023-24 to invest in the NDIA's ability to detect, respond to, and reduce fraud and non-compliant payments, and to develop a business case for new IT platforms and systems to detect and prevent fraud and non-compliant payments * $29.3 million over two years from 2023-24 to support the quality and effectiveness of services provided to participants, through improving oversight of services and increasing take up of evidence-based supports * $24.6 million over 4 years from 2023-24 to work with participants and providers to trial blended payment models, to increase incentives for providers to innovate service delivery and improve outcomes * $7.6 million over two years from 2023-24 to partner with communities to pilot alternative commissioning approaches to improve access to supports in remote and First Nations communities. To provide participants with greater certainty around their plan funding, the NDIA will also move to allowing for longer plans for participants, where appropriate. To make it easier for participants to access evidence-based assistive technology and other supports, the Department of Social Services will work with stakeholders to establish an expert advisory panel to identify evidence-based supports, and the NDIA will implement preferred provider arrangements to leverage the buying power of the NDIS. The NDIS Scheme Actuary has projected that without action, Scheme expenses would increase by $17.2 billion over 4 years from 2023-24. The funding in this measure supports the NDIA to improve the administration of the Scheme, which will reduce additional growth in Scheme expenses by $15.3 billion, moderating additional growth to $1.9 billion over 4 years from 2023-24. As a second step, National Cabinet has committed to an NDIS Financial Sustainability Framework (the Framework). Whilst the NDIS remains demand driven, the Framework will provide an annual growth target in the total costs of the Scheme of no more than 8 per cent by 1 July 2026, with further moderation of growth as the Scheme matures. This will moderate growth in NDIS costs by $622.8 million in 2026-27 and $59.0 billion over 7 years from 2027-28 to 2033-34. At 8 per cent per annum growth, the NDIS will be the fastest growing Commonwealth payment program. The Government will work with the disability community and states and territories to implement these initiatives and the Framework and ensure that every dollar goes to support those who need it most. Social Services |