Health Minister Mark Butler announced some very big changes to aged care and the NDIS in his speech this afternoon.
Here are the big things to know for each of the areas:
For the NDIS:
- Reducing the number of participants – because of new eligibility rules, the projected number of people on the scheme by the end of the decade is expected to be about 600,000. Today, there are 760,000 people on the scheme. This would suggest about 160,000 people will transition out of the scheme once the new eligibility rules come into effect.
- Butler also announced an overhaul of NDIS eligibility. Access to the scheme will move to assessments of a person’s functional capacity, rather than relying on diagnosis alone.
- $55 billion – that willbe the new targeted cost of the NDIS for 2030, down from the current forecast of $70 billion. The cost of the scheme last financial year was $48.5 billion, and it will surpass $50 billion in the current year. It’s a marked reduction in growth.
- Registration for NDIS providers will now be mandatory. Currently, less than 10 per cent of providers in the scheme are registered.
- $200 million will be used to establish the Inclusive Communities Fund, with the aim of rebuilding capability among disability organisations for people to have options to participate in their local community.
- It’s a bigger shake-up than many had predicted. Paul Sakkal, our chief political correspondent, says the scheme was at risk of being killed off entirely if major changes were not made now.
For aged care:
- Butler said the private health insurance rebate for Australians over 65 would be pared back to the standard level paid to everyone else, with the savings diverted back into aged care.
- Butler announced $3 billion to deliver more beds, more packages, and better care for older Australians.
- $1 billion will be put into the Support at Home program to make help with showering, dressing and continence management free of charge alongside clinical care.
- $200 million will be invested into 20 specialist dementia care units and an expansion of the Hospital to Aged Care Dementia Support Program, which helps older people transition from hospitals into residential aged care.
