News Hub Opinion
Voices of experience on living with disability, inclusion and how the NDIS is transforming lives.
A quick catch up with Benjamin on International Day
Tomorrow is International Day of People with Disability. The purpose of the day is to promote understanding of the issues facing people with disability, and to push for change.
We don’t often hear from young people with disability on this day. So we thought this was a good chance to ask our Champion Benjamin what he has been up to lately, and what he would like to see change for young people in this country.
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It’s time to get young people out of nursing homes
Last week the Royal Commission on Aged Care released their interim report. The report was long and there was a lot to take in, so we asked our good friend George Taleporos at the Summer Foundation to cast his eye over it and tell us what we needed to know.
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“I know what red tape is”. Self advocates tell the PM a few home truths
A couple of weeks ago the Prime Minister Scott Morrison and the new Minister for the NDIS Stuart Robert held a meeting with a small group of people with disability and their families in western Sydney.
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Becoming visible: A chat with Ricky Buchanan
How is the NDIS working for people who can’t leave their homes?
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“We deserve to be heard”: An open letter about the NDIS by Melissa Norman
“My name is Melissa Norman, I am 23 years old and I’m writing this letter to highlight the problems people with disabilities experience on the NDIS.”
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Are we getting action – or just more talk?
At the end of last week the Federal Minister for Social Services Paul Fletcher announced a new government action plan to get young people out of aged care.
So what is in the plan, what does it have to do with the NDIS – and what will it mean for young people currently trapped in facilities around the country?
George Taleporos from the Summer Foundation explains it all for us.
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Autism and the NDIS – what is going on?
There has been a great deal of media coverage during the last week about NDIA plans to review the guidelines which govern access to the NDIS. In particular whether or not they plan to change the guidelines relating to people with autism.
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NDIS review system can no longer be ignored
The Commonwealth Ombudsman has released a report on the administration of NDIS reviews. Among other things, it noted that as of February 2018 there were 8,100 reviews on hand, and a further 620 new review requests each week.
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Disability advocates alarmed as the NDIA breaks its silence on disability housing
You may have missed it last week with all the fuss about the government’s decision to walk away from the increase to the Medicare Levy to fund the NDIS, but the National Disability Insurance Agency finally broke its silence on the future direction of disability housing in the NDIS.
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The AAT and why what they say is important
Many people don’t know where to turn when they have a problem with the NDIS. Sam Paior from The Growing Space explains what happens when an NDIS review goes the next step – to the AAT – and why we should all be paying close attention to why those AAT decisions are so important.
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25 years on – the Disability Discrimination Act
Disability Discrimination Commissioner Alastair McEwin talks about the Disability Discrimination Act (the DDA) today, on it’s 20th anniversary
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Don’t screen out our humanity
The idea of screening genetic conditions has become part and parcel of having children for many Australian couples. The recent push by the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute for
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Choice and Control Under Threat: Victoria must listen to people with disability and stay true to the principles of the NDIS
Choice and control is one of the fundamental principles of the National Disability Insurance Scheme. We must be vigilant to ensure that this important principle is not lost in the rollout.
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Exciting and challenging times…
Over the past 2 ½ years I have spoken with thousands of people with disability, their families and carers, advocates and support workers sharing information, knowledge and experience about all things NDIS. These discussions have highlighted issues, anxieties, problems and frustrations but also options, possibilities, developments and opportunities for the future. I have loved my role as Community Educator for the Every Australian Counts campaign; it is something I feel very proud and privileged to have been a part of and these are exciting and challenging times.
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Is NDIS really as scary as people say it is?
If you have a child with a disability and never have been eligible for financial assistance before, the NDIS is like the answer to your dreams. To be able to write a plan with no limits, no thinking about the cost, no thinking where will I get the money from. I can tell you this was a dream we would have never thought possible.
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Ben’s Travels; buses and beyond…
I belong to a group on Facebook. It’s called “NDIS Grassroots Discussion”, and it’s a place where nearly 30,000 people share their NDIS stories – their fears, wrongs, questions, anger and sometimes, their NDIS joys.
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Siblings and the NDIS
The NDIS is a new way of supporting people with disability. Whilst it aims to provide greater choice and control regarding services for participants it also recognises the important role of ‘informal supports’.
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Tea for two – our journeys
My sister Meredith and I are friends. We meet at least twice a week to drink tea and catch up. We work on arts projects together and belong to a peer organisation where Meredith is a member of the group I facilitate called the Freedom Fighters.
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My Daughter Is Not Special!
When I set out on the path of planning for my daughter’s migration to the NDIS I was determined that there would be nothing special about her supports, her equipment or her life.
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Amazing things are going to happen
My name is Kathryn Lyons and I’m going to change the world.
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