News
Children living with disability and their families could need to wait until their ninth birthday before they become eligible for NDIS support under the scheme’s latest reform to raise to age of enrolment from the age of seven.
Federal Minister for Disability and the NDIS, Mark Butler, announced the change after speaking with State Health Ministers about taking responsibility for allocating mental health supports, while increasing NDIS wait times for children under the age of nine.
Mr Butler claims the federal government will support the changes with a $700 million dollar commitment posed to expand state-based mental health avenues for young people.
Making sure we have not just the right models of care but enough of those services available… is a focus of Commonwealth and state action going forward
Mark Butler
However, the decision to raise the age of eligibility for NDIS services would see many children with disability go without support, with the introduction of Foundational Supports, being pushed back until the end of the year.
Jointly co-designed by people with disability and funded by Commonwealth, State, and Territory Governments, Foundational Supports are being described by the government as essential assistance to people outside the NDIS. Over 11% of children under the age of nine have a disability, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). That’s 117 in 1000 kids.
Although the delay in the rollout of Foundational Supports could bring an added layer of stress to families and caregivers whose children are unable to access the NDIS, the Minister sought to reassure them by explaining the changes weren’t going to come into immediate effect.
The foundational supports commitment [is] tied to the hospital funding deal. Those deals won't be completed before the latter part of this year.
Mark Butler
The Minister went on to claim the changes would not affect children with severe lifelong psychological disabilities. Instead, Mr Butler said the changes were for “kids who need a lower acuity level of support to nudge them back on course.”