Opinion 10 March 2022

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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Opinion 30 November 2021

Planning for life with COVID – getting some answers on what people with disabilities need to know to stay safe

As Australia opens up despite ongoing COVID community transmission, people with disabilities need to work through some complex questions. One of these questions hits our friend Dr George Taleporos a bit too close to home – so he got some answers to share with all of us in his new series of Reasonable and Necessary.

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Opinion 4 November 2021

Australia should invest in the NDIS to help the economy after COVID

Emma Dawson, head of independent think tank Per Capita has had a good look at the numbers behind the NDIS – and the Federal Government’s cost-blowout scare campaign. While people with disability and families are all aware of how valuable the NDIS is when it’s working well, Emma also found that for every dollar invested in the NDIS, $2.25 is returned to the Australian economy. The NDIS is a good investment. Here’s why…

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News 29 October 2021

Vaccinating people with disability against COVID-19

People with disability are at much bigger risk of getting very sick or dying from COVID-19. But getting a vaccine has been really hard for lots of people in our community, and vaccination rates are still too low. So we have been asking people with disability, families and the people who support them to tell us about their vaccine experiences, so we can tell the government what they can do to make it easier. Here’s what we have heard so far…

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Opinion 5 October 2021

Left behind – disabled people and the COVID vaccine

A new report from the Disability Royal Commission into the COVID vaccine rollout is just the latest in a long list of documented failures by governments to address the needs and rights of disabled people. In the race to “open up”, governments must prioritise the needs of disabled people and do a much better job of engaging with the expertise of disabled people and the sector’s organisations, says El Gibbs, an award-winning writer and disability rights advocate.

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Opinion 26 August 2021

Vulnerable Australians forgotten in race to reopen

In January 2021 the Commonwealth government released its COVID-19 vaccine rollout strategy. The plan prioritised those most likely to be exposed to COVID-19, and importantly those most likely to become ill and die from the disease – a sensible approach, similar to many jurisdictions around the world.

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Opinion 24 August 2021

Open letter: Regarding the reality of booking a COVID vaccination for children with disability and medical conditions

This month, young people with disability joined the list of people who are allowed to get the COVID-19 vaccine. Being eligible is one thing – but how easy is it to actually make happen? Just as we have heard from so many people with disability and families in our community – Heike and her son Bodhi found out just how difficult it can be – the hard way. This is Heike’s open letter to the government.

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News 25 February 2021

Last minute backflip from NDIS on Support Coordination

Breaking news out of the NDIS this morning …

And it is not good. Not good at all.

Buried in an announcement about the end of some of the changes made to the NDIS as a result of the COVID19 is the news that participants will NO longer be able to buy or top up Support Coordination out of their core budget.

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News 23 November 2020

New Coronavirus rules for Victoria

Victoria has the highest numbers of COVID19 infections in Australia. We are collecting all the latest news, info and resources for people with disability and families as it comes out so you don’t have to go hunting. (We have done our best to try and explain what it all means which has NOT been easy…)

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News 18 November 2020

Coronavirus changes in South Australia

South Australia has gone into 6-day a “hard lockdown” starting on Thursday November 19. We’ve popped all the info people with disability and families need to know right here – and we will keep updating as new info comes out.

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News 18 September 2020

Keeping people with disability safe during COVID

Yesterday the National Disability Insurance Agency, the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission and the Department of Social Services all appeared before the Senate inquiry into the government’s management of the COVID19 pandemic.

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News 9 September 2020

Testing times in the NDIS…

Just over a week ago the Minister for the NDIS Stuart Robert announced the government’s response to the Tune review.

It was a good news/bad news kind of a thing.

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Opinion 22 August 2020

Pandemic experience shows the NDIS is still not working like it should

“Please stop making this so hard. We are bruised and fragile already, COVID has made us even more vulnerable, and then we have to fight against the very service that is meant to be helping us. Please stop making our needs a battleground, stop assuming we are somehow trying to swindle services we don’t need, and just let us have the NDIS that we were meant to get.”

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News 22 August 2020

Coronavirus changes in Queensland

Changes have been announced for people with disability in some parts of Queensland about masks and PPE, supported accommodation, and new rules. We’ve popped all the info people with disability and families need to know right here – and we will keep updating as new info comes out.

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News 20 August 2020

Every Australian Counts heads to the Disability Royal Commission

“We feel forgotten. We need help. And we need things to be much, much easier”.

They were the messages we took to the Disability Royal Commission yesterday.

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News 19 August 2020

“Left out and locked down” The experiences of people with disability and their families during COVID19

“We’ve been forgotten. We need more help. We need things to be easier”. They are the overwhelming messages to come out of our Coronavirus survey for people with disability and families.

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News 19 August 2020

Media release: “Left out and locked down” report highlights the COVID-19 experience of people with disability

A new report into the experiences of NDIS participants and their families during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic shows many were stretched to breaking point and let down by poor communication and a lack of support and help.

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News 11 August 2020

Get your mask on!

There’s been a bunch of new info released over the last couple of months around masks and people with disability. We’ve popped it all in the one place so you don’t have to go hunting. (And we have done our best to try and explain what it all means which has NOT been easy…)

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News 3 August 2020

Getting answers to the big questions – our Zoom forum with the NDIA

Why can’t we have planning meetings over video? Why can’t we get contact details for staff at the NDIA? Why do approvals for equipment take so long?

And will you cut my funding next time because I did not use all of it as a result of COVID lockdowns?

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News 3 August 2020

Advocacy groups call for better support for people with disability

Disability advocacy groups are calling on the National Disability Insurance Agency, the Federal government and the Victorian State government to all work together to make sure people with disability and their families have what they need to stay safe and well during the coronavirus pandemic.

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News 13 July 2020

Big coronavirus changes – and what it means for Victorians

For all our Melbourne peeps, our hearts go out to you. Another six weeks in lockdown. And we are with you – because that is where we are based too.

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News 26 June 2020

Get your calculators out – it’s the new NDIS price guide

The final price guide for 2020 came out today.

Well … sort of the final. At least until the next update comes out.

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Opinion 26 June 2020

Corona’s brand new world

The last few months have been really really tough for a lot of people in our community. But for EAC supporter Lumi Winterson, the pandemic has given her the freedom to explore activities that are great for her mental health and wellbeing.

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News 3 June 2020

NDIS prices – the good, the bad and the ugly

The NDIA released the new price guide for 2020 today. The good news is that the NDIA have got this guide out much earlier than usual. This means we all have a chance to dig around in it and get a handle on everything before it actually goes live on July 1.

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