PCA’s submission focuses on draft lists of supports that NDIS funds can, and cannot, be spent on. These will form the basis of a transitional NDIS Rule under changes to the NDIS Act. The draft list of Supports that are not NDIS supports includes “palliative care”. PCA recommends this wording be changed to read “specialist clinical palliative care”, to clarify that:

• Specialist clinical palliative care is a responsibility of mainstream (State/Territory) health systems.
• The NDIS is responsible for funding reasonable and necessary non-clinical supports for NDIS participants with terminal conditions.

This change is consistent with the recommendations of the Independent NDIS Review, which called for clearer definitions of the responsibilities of health and disability systems, and better coordination of supports across these systems. As currently worded, the draft lists do not address the difficulties that people with life-limiting conditions face when they are required to navigate health and disability systems to access basic care and support.

Submission to consultation on the National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment Bill 2024