NDIS Minister Stuart Robert tight-lipped over checks on SA woman Ann Marie Smith
Kelly Vincent, co-chair of the state taskforce established after Ann Marie Smith’s horrific death, has blasted a federal minister for refusing to share how often she was checked by the NDIS.
SA News
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Former state MP Kelly Vincent, who is co-chairing a taskforce to investigate gaps in SA’s disability sector, has attacked the federal NDIS minister for withholding information about how often Ann Marie Smith was checked on by health authorities.
Her comments were made before she held the first meeting of the 12-member taskforce on Wednesday afternoon, which was established after Ms Smith’s death.
“We are talking about life and death here – and that needs to be far, far beyond politics,” Ms Vincent said.
Ms Smith, who had cerebral palsy, died in hospital at the age of 54 last month after spending the last year of her life confined to a cane chair, which doubled as her toilet, in squalid conditions nside her Kensington Park home.
An independent inquiry, led by a retired federal court judge, was launched on Tuesday to examine how the federal NDIS delivery contributed to Ms Smith’s death.
NDIS Minister Stuart Robert said the National Disability Insurance Agency “was checking on her”, but did not explain how Ms Smith’s squalid living conditions were not detected.
Mr Robert said he knows how often Ms Smith was being checked on by the NDIA, but did not reveal the details.
“I am going to wait until the inquiry produces all of the information so all Australians can make proper judgments so we can get to the bottom of it,” he told the ABC on Wednesday.
“I’m not going to prejudice an investigation that's ongoing into a criminal matter.
“There’s 365,000 participants in the NDIS, so it’s a very large job, so to what extent did they check in is just one of the questions the inquiry will look into.
“We are dealing with a very specific case that goes back to 2009 (when Ms Smith’s last parent died) and there are a lot of moving parts in it with a lot of individuals involved.”
Ms Vincent, a former Dignity Party MP who lives with cerebral palsy, said the minister’s response was “unforgivable”.
“To have a minister say he knows how often someone like Ann Marie Smith is being checked on by the NDIA and not be willing to share that information … is absolutely outrageous and I think unforgivable,” she said.
“Now is the time for absolute honesty – now is the time for everyone to accept blame and say, ‘how do we work together?’ and admit that we’ve stuffed up enormously.
“We have made the biggest mistakes that have cost people their lives.”
Contacted by The Advertiser for a response, Mr Robert’s office referred back to his comments on radio.
Ms Vincent is co-chairing the SA taskforce with former Disability SA boss Dr David Caudrey, who said all 12 members will be taking a “fearless”, but quick, approach in examining the state’s disability care sector.
“This taskforce process is meant to be a quick process to advise the (human services) minister very quickly about gaps in the system and any particular shortcomings,” Dr Caudrey said.
“I think the taskforce is going to be completely fearless on the grounds that at least half the taskforce are not public servants, they’re not people who are indebted to any political party.
“I am absolutely convinced that anything that we put up will not be a whitewash, it will be required to actually say it like it is.”
One topic high on the taskforce’s agenda is that of disability worker screening. Ms Smith was moved to a federal NDIS plan in 2018”
Former Integrity Care SA employee Rosemary Maione, who was the sole carer of Ms Smith, was working without a disability services employment check for at least six years, Human Services Minister Michelle Lensink said on Tuesday.
It was revealed in a parliamentary committee hearing on Monday that Ms Maione only applied for clearance 18 days after Ms Smith’s death.
There were also allegations that she stole money from a client in 2013 and was banned by Domiciliary Care SA. The claims were denied by Ms Maione’s lawyer Stephen Ey.
Ms Vincent said: “There are a number of issues that we need to work on.
“One is the screening of support workers, and I know the Premier (Steven Marshall) is very keen on us to look at that issue.”
“How does someone continue to work when there have been red flags, such as stealing, raised already?”
Dr Caudrey said the “single biggest problem” in Ms Smith’s case is that only one person seemed to be in her life.
“Nobody should be in the position where they only have one person in their life. It is totally unsafe.”
The first meeting, which started at 4.30pm via Microsoft Teams, was dedicated to setting out the terms of reference.
Ms Vincent said each member of the taskforce would be able to express their own concerns and share evidence before moving forward.
An interim report is expected to be completed by June 15, while Dr Caudrey and Ms Vincent continue to meet with “as many people as possible” who have reform ideas.
A final report is expected to be in the hands of Human Services Minister Michelle Lensink by the end of July.
As well as the state and federal inquiries, there is a manslaughter investigation by SA Police and another inquiry by the State Coroner.