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The Big Story
Kirsten Deane - in a happier mood
Foundational Supports desperately need funding
Kirsten Deane, Deputy Director of the Melbourne Disability Institute, was scathing.
“OK,” she told the DSC Conference yesterday. “So just where are these foundational supports? In fact, what are they? I saw the Premiers were very happy to get up and pose with smiles for the cameras after their meeting with the PM, but they had no idea how completely f—— they are.”
“The problem is, there’s nothing behind it.”
The session was addressing what’s rapidly becoming a critical issue for the NDIS - the existence (or rather the lack of) foundational supports that can help People with Disability who don’t qualify for the NDIS.
Pannelists Deane, Sophie Cusworth (CEO of Women with Disability Australia) and Hannah Orban (from the Grattan Institute) all agreed that while the NDIS had achieved its objective of providing support to individuals who met its eligibility requirements, these barriers were leaving others uncovered.
And because the NDIS was swallowing all the funding, people who failed to qualify for one reason or another were left stranded and unsupported.
Cusworth pointed out that this was a particular issue for people at the intersections. She offered an example of a woman, from a migrant background, who possessed specific disabilities that might not meet the stringent definitions required for a NDIS package but was left floundering as state governments had withdrawn from funding.
Orban offered a glimpse into the number of individuals who were in this situation by identifying the number of Australians who identified as disabled and comparing this huge figure with the number of NDIS recipients.
By unpacking the specific cohorts missing out on individualised packages, she indicated it was possible to identify these unaddressed areas of critical need.
Author’s Note
Yesterday, at the end of DSC’s successful yearly conference in Melbourne, the organisers played a video thanking all the people who had contributed to making the program such a success. And it was!
Bringing people with (often very) different perspectives together is always a risky venture. Over the past two days, however, it succeeded in allowing everyone to share their views and, in the end, move towards a shared vision of the future.
Disability care will always be a contested issue. Everyone has their own ideas about how the sector should be shaped. The point is find a way forward, and the best way of achieving this is always by discussing issues so we can move towards a joint approach.
And that’s the aim of abilityNEWS.
So if you have any ideas about stories or issues you think we should be reporting on, please reach out and get in touch with us, anytime, at [email protected]
The Briefing
Disability Discrimination Commissioner Rosemary Kayess (photo courtesy UNSW)
Time for Change: Young people with disability’s perspectives on discrimination
By Children and Young People with Disability Australia
Young people with disability shared their experiences of discrimination at a national forum on reforming disability discrimination laws. The event, hosted by CYDA and Families Australia, focused on priorities for modernising legal protections.
MS Australia hoping to focus the new government on its problems
By Multiple Sclerosis Australia
The CEO of MS Australia says the organisation will be pushing the new government for a national action plan for neurological conditions, together with a national neurological data set. The organisation is also looking forward to early meetings with the cross-bench and opposition, including the re-elected independent member for Kooyong, Monique Ryan, a paediatric neurologist.
Tolebrutinib lowers the risk of disability progression in non-relapsing secondary MS
By Multiple Sclerosis Australia
Tolebrutinib, a treatment targeting specific cells, has been shown to reduce the progression of MS in people with non-relapsing secondary progressive multiple sclerosis. The findings suggest potential benefits for managing this advanced stage of the disease, which currently lacks effective treatment options.
Deafblind Victoria celebrates its monthly program of events
By Deafblind Australia
Deafblind Victoria’s monthly recreation program helps Deafblind individuals enjoy shared outings in public spaces across Melbourne. The long-running initiative fosters inclusion and awareness while building community through supported activities and events. It remains surprising how many locations are effectively inaccessible without such careful planning.
Another successful event organised by Deafblind Victoria
The Wrap
Libs’ purge targets YouTuber
By The Australian
Devinder Singh, organiser of a controversial NDIS conference, faces potential expulsion from the WA Liberal Party for interviewing rival political candidates on his YouTube channel. The party criticises these interviews for implicitly criticising the Liberal Party and promoting opposition figures.
The government wants to contain NDIS growth. But ineligible people with disability also need support
By The Conversation
As the government seeks to moderate growth of the scheme budget, some NDIS participants are finding they are no longer eligible for the scheme. The problem is, the supports they’re supposed to be able to access instead aren’t yet in place – or don’t exist.
Quiz - What is the main function of the Disability Services Commissioner in Victoria?
(a) Approving NDIS funding (b) Investigating complaints about services (c) Allocating accommodation
Answer – The Commissioner investigates complaints about disability services in Victoria.
The Diary
