This Week is Going to Be Huge
This is one of the most important weeks ever for our community.
State and territory Premiers will be meeting with the Prime Minister on Wednesday to decide on the future of the NDIS.
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Big Changes Revealed by the NDIS Review – But any Changes Must Be Codesigned
BREAKING NEWS! BIG CHANGES REVEALED in this exclusive interview with NDIS Review co-chairs Bruce and Lisa. Read on to find out more.
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Welcome to the team
I’m Nicole, a freelance writer, power wheelchair user and coffee lover living in Naarm/Melbourne. I have a blog where I interview people using kindness, determination, and empathy to
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What does the Royal Commission say about the NDIS?
On Friday 29th September the Final Report of the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability was presented to Parliament. Over 12 volumes, there are 222 recommendations of ways to promote an inclusive society that supports the independence and rights of people with disability. We want to thank everyone who contributed to the Royal Commission over the last 4 and a half years.
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Every Australian Counts Codesign Work with NDIA
The Commonwealth Government has announced funding for improving NDIS processes, and the NDIA has committed to codesigning these improvements with the disability sector.
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The latest from the NDIS Review
On Wednesday 6th September a NDIS Review community meeting was held in Geelong. They also talked about the next steps of the Review and the recommendations the Panel will make to the Government about how to improve the NDIS. Here is a summary of what they said in case you missed it…
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My Take On “Redesigning the NDIS”
This week, Australia’s national representative body of independent disability advocacy organisations, Disability Advocacy Network Australia, released a report calling for “urgent and radical reform of the NDIS”.
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Independent Assessments 2.0? NDIS Review Chair Forecasts Massive Changes – check them out…
Today the NDIS Review Chair gave us a first look at some huge changes that they want to make. In case you missed the speech by Professor Bruce Bonyhady, here is a summary:
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What Would Life Be Like Without the NDIS? & 5 Reasons to Defend It
This week, 10 years ago, our community won the fight for a National Disability Insurance Scheme. Today, the media cycle is dominated by stories about the cost of the scheme, so it’s important that we remind ourselves about what life was like before the NDIS, why the NDIS was introduced and why it needs to succeed into the future.
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Budget 2023 with Minister Shorten & How the NDIS Is Changing… In Plain(ish) English
Is the government putting a cap on the NDIS? Are our plans going to be cut? Will it be more difficult to get onto the NDIS? These are
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NDIS Minister National Press Club Address and what you might have missed (it’s scary!)
At today’s National Press Club Address NDIS Minister Bill Shorten made some important announcements and reminded me why I have such deep respect for this man and gratitude for his commitment to improving the lives of disabled people.
Then it ended with something really scary that freaked me out! Here is a summary of his announcements and my take on what he had to say. You’ll have to read to the end for the scary bit.
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In case you missed it: EAC and the NDIS Review’s online Q&A
The big new independent NDIS Review was announced in October – ahead of schedule, and with a bunch of familiar faces on board. So we got in really quick – and with some help from their Canberra team we worked out how to get you (or your questions and messages) in the same virtual room as them. You can catch the video and transcript right here…
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Are the NDIA and their external lawyers being ‘model litigants’? Are they on their best behaviour with you at the AAT?
If people with disability don’t get what they need from the NDIS they might have to take their case against the NDIA to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT). The NDIA and their external lawyers are meant to follow ‘model litigant obligations’ – which are rules about being really decent and fair. If they don’t, there can be a big power imbalance, which is really unfair for people with disability. We want the NDIA to act like model litigants each and every time – but we need your help to make sure it really happens…
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What can we expect from the new chair of the NDIA Kurt Fearnley?
Our friend Dr George Taleporos sat down with the new Chair of the National Disability Insurance Agency, Kurt Fearnley, for his latest episode of Reasonable and Necessary. He finds out why Kurt took on the job, and what we can expect from his leadership of the Agency.
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What’s happening with NDIS AAT appeals? Recap: online forum with NDIS Minister Bill Shorten and NDIA Chief Counsel Matthew Swainson
Did you catch our live forum about NDIS AAT appeals with NDIS Minister Bill Shorten and NDIA Chief Counsel Matthew Swainson? You can find a quick summary, as well as the video recordings and the transcript right here.
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NDIS Minister Bill Shorten’s announcement on the new NDIA CEO, Board Chair and Board Members
Today Minister for the NDIS Bill Shorten has announced five new people who will all play important roles in running the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) – a new CEO, a new Board Chair, and three new Board Members. They start on Monday, October 17, 2022. Find the details from the announcement right here…
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An open letter to all members of Australia’s next Federal Parliament
More than 50 disability advocacy organisations representing millions of Australians are urging the next Federal Parliament to reverse the “death by a thousand cuts” that is devastating the lives of people with disability and undermining the NDIS. In the Open Letter to Australia’s Future Parliament released today, the disability advocacy and support organisations are calling on future MPs to back key reforms that will ensure no one with disability who needs support is left behind. Read and sign the open letter here.
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Explainer: What were the original intentions of the National Disability Insurance Scheme?
One of the things people with disability and families have been asking their federal election candidates to reflect on this year is a promise to bring the NDIS back on track with it’s original intentions. To look at why we all fought so hard for the NDIS in the first place. What were the ideas, intentions and principles behind the idea for an NDIS? Our friends from PIAC have written a new helpful explainer…
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Vale Wendy Lovelace and Matt McCracken
The Every Australian Counts community is greatly saddened by the recent passing of two passionate inclusion and disability advocates, Matt McCracken and Wendy Lovelace.
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Media release: Labor and Greens have committed to fixing the NDIS – Morrison Government must detail its plans now
Media release, 19 April 2022: The Every Australian Counts campaign has today called on the Morrison Government to explain its plans for the future of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), following the welcome release of NDIS policies from Labor and the Greens.
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Explainer part 3: New changes to the NDIS Act
Last year thousands of you emailed our Senators urging them not to support certain changes to the NDIS Bill as originally proposed by NDIS Minister Linda Reynolds. And your message got through loud and clear – the changes were changed! The NDIS Bill was voted through parliament recently – thankfully our friends from PIAC have another explainer to help us all make sense of it all…
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Which NDIS recommendations has the Federal Government actually delivered on?
How many? Which ones? Why? We know a lot of those recommendations were made because of you. You have made thousands of submissions via us – and directly to the inquiries over the years. So how many of the recommended changes were actually made? What has been ignored and forgotten? Thanks to a new tool from our friends at Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC), it’s easier than ever to find out…
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Is your organisation returning to face-to-face meetings? You need to read this…
Lockdowns have lifted – and some disability organisations are moving back to face-to-face meetings, and interstate travel. The pandemic is not over. People with disability are still at risk of serious health complications and death – even with some protections from vaccines. And apart from that – we cannot now or ever forget the enormous gains mainstream society has made in online accessibility over the last couple of years. Our friend Dr George Taleporos has some important advice for these organisations based on his recent personal experience.
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Goodbye Mum, I’ll be okay
“Like most parents, my mum wanted to know that I was okay. But unlike most parents, her middle-aged son needs round-the-clock support from others, to stay alive.” Our good friend Dr George Taleporos has an important message for NDIS decision-makers, following the recent death of his Mother. “When we say the NDIS is for 450,000 Australians with disabilities – we are leaving out millions of family members who rely on the scheme to provide them with the assurance that their loved ones are going to be okay when they die.”
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