NDIS: autism rates blow out in SA, likely to be same nationally
Children with autism-spectrum disorders have flooded the trial of the National Disability Insurance Scheme in South Australia and make up almost half of all participants, contributing to a blowout in the numbers which would be replicate¬d across the country when the full scheme launches.
The Australian has previously revealed that the trial has doubled in size after bilateral agreements were negotiated between the state and the commonwealth which predicted only 5085 children aged up to 14 would be eligible.
Instead, the figure is closer to 10,000 and 46 per cent of them have autism, a scenario for which there were no preparations, according to Disability SA executive director David Caudrey.
“That is a much bigger proportion than we were used to dealing with,” Mr Caudrey told The Australian. “A lot of children who have autism have been coming out of the woodwork, these are children who were not known to the state system at all who have come to sign on to the NDIS.
“It’s certainly not what was anticipated.”