Disability Representative Organisations (DROs) have made a joint submission.
It was coordinated by DANA in its role as the National Coordination Function. The DROs used our collective voice to advocate for changes to what supports are funded under the NDIS.
The Department of Social Services wanted to know what people thought about the ‘NDIS Supports rules.’ Some people call this section 10 of the NDIS Act. It is about what NDIS funding can be used for.
DROs first made a joint submission in August 2024. This was for a draft version of the support rules. The government then brought in transitional rules. Transitional means when you are between systems or final rules. The Transitional Rules started 3 October 2024. These rules had three lists:
- Supports that are ‘NDIS supports’
- Supports that are not ‘NDIS supports’
- ‘Replacement supports’ – Supports that are not NDIS supports that may be considered replacement supports.
This submission was developed by the DROs working together across diverse communities. The “nothing about us without us” principle and the disability rights movement was important to how we wrote the submission.
Key recommendations in the joint submission include:
- Be clearer and fairer in NDIS Support decisions
- Understand and support people as individuals who have unique needs and identities
- Make changes slowly to make sure people with disability co-design any changes
This is a Plain English summary of the submission.