Page 3825 - Week 09 - Wednesday, 24 August 2011
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apply to new incidents and would provide lifetime care and support services to around 900 to 1,000 people each year.
People who have significant disability from a pre-existing injury, for example a motor vehicle accident, would be covered by the national disability insurance scheme. It is proposed that the national injury insurance scheme would be administered by state and territory jurisdictions and primarily funded from insurance premiums. All jurisdictions will need to work together to bring about a successful conclusion and I am sure that Minister Burch will ensure that any implementation of these schemes will be done in a way that best meets the needs of Canberrans with a disability, their families and carers.
While the aspiration to a national scheme is most welcome, there remains some important work ahead to enable the time frame to be achieved. Some of the issues include the logistical challenges for transitioning to a new national system in a way that achieves efficiency, improves service quality and delivers on the promise of a simplified and streamlined assessment process, the nature of the funding mechanism for the national disability insurance scheme, the governance arrangements for a national disability insurance scheme through the creation of a national disability insurance agency, the roles and responsibilities of the ACT government, along with the other jurisdictions, and the need to better understand eligibility and assessment processes to ensure that no-one falls through the gaps. Finally, there are a range of issues relating to the national injury insurance scheme, including its scope and the need for structural and legislative changes.
The Productivity Commission’s report brings with it a golden and historic opportunity to transform the way care and support are delivered to our fellow Australians with disabilities. This opportunity should be embraced by every Australian, regardless of political persuasion. Catastrophic injury knows no politics. It has no friends. The Productivity Commission’s recommendations are far reaching and require detailed consideration and work across all jurisdictions to ensure that the existing service system is enhanced and not simply replaced. Through the Council of Australian Governments, I trust that the ACT government, along with the commonwealth, the states and territories, will work productively through the funding mechanisms and other details of the scheme’s operation.
Although funding for disability services in the ACT has increased on average by 9.8 per cent per annum since 2003, unmet demand for disability services continues to be an issue. The ACT is not alone in this. Importantly, the Productivity Commission acknowledged that all jurisdictions across the country face greater demand than can be met under current arrangements. The funding and delivery of disability services, with a focus on early intervention and long-term care, contribute to the broad aims of the national disability strategy.
In February 2011, the ACT government signed, in partnership with all jurisdictions, the national disability strategy. This strategy sets out a 10-year national plan to improve life for Australians with a disability and their families and carers. Not only does the strategy provide a national framework to drive future reforms in the disability services system, importantly it drives reforms that value people with a disability, their families and carers and their contributions to the community, arts, sport and business.
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