Disability advocates call for annual savings in South Australia’s NDIS budget to be spent to make the system less confusing for clients
In the wake of the shocking death of Ann Marie Smith disability advocates are calling for an end to under-spending in SA’s NDIS budget, saying the extra funds should be used to make the system less confusing.
SA News
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Savings generated from not spending the full NDIS budget each year should be used to make the system less confusing in the wake of Ann Marie Smith’s shocking death, disability advocates say.
Figures show just 63 per cent of the total NDIS budget allocated for SA has been used so far this financial year, which is an underspend of more than $563 million.
NDIS spending has grown rapidly since its infancy in 2013, but the final figure each year has been less than forecast.
Last financial year, the federal government spent $4.6 billion less than expected on the scheme, putting it in reach of a budget surplus.
NDIS money spent in SA consistency lags behind the rest of the nation, with one of the lowest years being 2016-17, when just 56 per cent of the state’s allocation was used, compared with 69 per cent for the whole country.
Ms Smith, 54, of Kensington Park, died while under an NDIS plan two months ago.
She spent the last year of her life confined to a cane chair, which doubled as her toilet – and she eventually died of profound septic shock and multi-organ failure.
Ms Smith, who had cerebral palsy, had rotten flesh from severe pressure sores and was malnourished.
Her shocking death is set to dominate debate when State Parliament resumes today, as the Opposition is expected to ramp up pressure on the issue.
Disability advocates argue a key reason for historic underspending by the NDIS is because people with disabilities find the system too confusing to navigate.
Women With Disabilities SA convener Katharine Annear said the federal government should “work constructively” to make sure all participants were using their plans effectively.
“If people aren’t spending it through their plans for whatever reason, what investments can we make in the community with those dollars?” she told The Advertiser.
“If you have an underspend, then pump (the money) into local government for better infrastructure or campaigns about employing people with disabilities.”
Fellow disability advocate, Samantha Connor, said the NDIS was tied up in “bureaucratic red tape” and any surplus money should go back into improving the scheme.
State Opposition Human Services spokeswoman Nat Cook said the plan’s rollout under the Morrison government has made it “almost impossible for participants to navigate”.
“Human Services Minister Michelle Lensink should have been insisting that underspent funds … are used to improve services being provided to people with disability here in SA,” she said.
“There have been significant cuts to state-funded services, with the Community Visitor Program being only one example.”
Former Dignity Party MP Kelly Vincent, who is co-chairing a taskforce examining gaps in SA’s disability sector, said the state had lost several vital advocacy bodies.
“Part of what leads to cases like Ann Marie Smith is people being unaware of their rights and how to assert them,” Ms Vincent said.
“And also the lack of access to assisted technology that might have enabled Ann Marie to be a bit more independent or communicate using a device.”
Ms Vincent agreed the yearly underspend was alarming, but said it was important not to “demonise” the government for it.
“People get this money and they don’t always know how to use it or there might not be the right service providers for them in their area,” she said.
A spokeswoman for NDIS Minister Stuart Robert said participants spent, on average, $40,000 on their plan each year and the scheme was “demand-driven”.
SA currently has about 33,000 participants and the scheme continues to grow nationwide.
“Even with this strong growth, the number of participants entering the NDIS has been lower than originally estimated.
Federal Opposition NDIS spokesman Bill Shorten claimed the government“hides” behind the argument that the system is “demand-driven”.
“The reality is the money is not getting through the pipe to people with disability who need it,” he told The Advertiser.
“While people like Ann Marie Smith and David Harris die in their homes for lack of care this government has ripped $4.6 billion out of the NDIS,” he said.
Since July 2019, funds saved on the NDIS in SA have been placed into a reserve fund.
“Clearly that money – a lot of it contributed by the states – is better spent on the disability safety net and on ensuring the standards watchdog has real teeth and uses them,” Mr Shorten said.
Human Services Minister Michelle Lensink said she would advocate for the fund to benefit SA programs, “such as enacting any recommendations that may be made by the SA taskforce currently examining gaps in oversight and safeguarding for people with a disability”.
