News

In a sweeping reform to the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), outgoing NDIS Minister Bill Shorten has unveiled the first official list outlining what the NDIS will and won’t fund. The changes, set to take effect tomorrow, target the elimination of certain therapies, lifestyle purchases, and services that should be covered by other government systems. 

Notably, the list explicitly rules out funding for drugs, alcohol, sexual services, rent, food and holidays. Lifestyle “treatments” such as tarot card readings, reiki, cuddle therapy, and wilderness therapy are also banned, along with mainstream services such as homeschooling and prescription drugs available through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS). 

“At long last, there will now be a central list of what NDIS participants can spend their money on and what they can’t spend their money on,” Shorten said today. 

“We don’t pay for the rent, rental bonds, home deposits, mortgages. We do not pay for donations, tithes, gifts or political contributions. We do not pay for fines, penalties or court-ordered amounts. We do not pay for spa baths, saunas, steam rooms. 

“We don’t pay for groceries in the ordinary course of events. We don’t support a range of therapies from tarot cards, clairvoyance, wilderness therapy, cuddle therapy.” 

Melba Acting CEO Melissa Webster said while she supported the decision to remove a number of the items listed, it was vital that people with disability had access to the supports and services they needed and that they were funded where needed.  

“It’s important that people are not disadvantaged due to their disability,” she said. 

“Animal therapy, for example, when conducted via a qualified allied health professional, can help enormously with instances of trauma.” 

The reforms follow a Senate estimates session earlier this year, where concerns were raised about dodgy providers exploiting the system. Some providers had reportedly encouraged participants to withdraw cash for illicit drugs or use NDIS funds for vacations. Shorten emphasised that such abuses would no longer be possible under the new guidelines. 

“We’re just being really clear that this scheme is going to be run properly, transparently, in the best interest of participants,” Shorten said. 

Among the banned therapies are shamanic healing, aromatherapy, hypnotherapy, sound therapy and animal therapy, while more mainstream services such as ambulance services and “hospital in the home” care are also excluded. 

Shorten underscored that the NDIS should not be a substitute for other taxpayer-funded systems. 

“The NDIS is not going to pay for home-schooling. We’re not going to pay for the stuff which the school system is meant to do,” he said. 

“We’re not going to pay for prescription drugs you can get on the [Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme]. We’re not going to pay for items which you can find on Medicare.” 

The reforms aim to streamline the list of NDIS-funded supports into 36 categories, covering essential needs such as allied health therapies for children with developmental delays, and health management for conditions such as continence, wound care and seizures. 

Participants currently using services on the banned list will have a 12-month transition period, during which administrators may waive mistaken claims less than $1,500. Shorten added that longer NDIS plans, lasting up to five years with capped budgets, will be introduced in the future. 

These changes are part of a broader effort to curb the NDIS’s rising costs, which had been projected to reach $100 billion within a decade. The government estimates the reforms will save taxpayers $14 billion over four years. 

The new list was made possible under laws passed in August, marking the beginning of a series of reforms that aim to reshape the NDIS for future generations. 

For a list of supports that are – and aren’t – on the list, go to the NDIS website.