Lifeline for residents of Halwyn Centre disabled care facility
The State Government has intervened on behalf of 38 profoundly physically and intellectually disabled residents in a Brisbane care facility after Queensland Health announced its closure.
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QUEENSLAND Health Minister Steven Miles has thrown a lifeline to the residents of a Brisbane care facility for the disabled, pledging to keep it open until they can transition to new accommodation with 24-hour nursing care under the National Disability Insurance Scheme.
Mr Miles met with 38 profoundly physically and intellectually disabled residents of the Halwyn Centre and their worried families in Red Hill this week to address concerns about the closure of the facility, set for November 27.
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After a teleconference with Federal Social Services Minister Paul Fletcher today, Mr Miles wrote to Halwyn families with a commitment to continue operating the centre until all residents had transitioned to “appropriate NDIS supported accommodation with the level of disability and health support to meet their needs”.
He has also committed to continue respite services at Halwyn until at least June 30 — four months longer than originally announced by Queensland Health.
“The Queensland Government will continue to take the position that no resident receives fewer supports as a consequence of their transition into alternative accommodation,” Mr Miles said in his letters to the families.
Queensland Health announced Halwyn’s closure earlier this month, citing the $22 billion National Disability Insurance Scheme’s rejection of the centre as a specialist disability accommodation provider.
The announcement has exposed a funding hole in the NDIS for participants who require 24/7 nursing care, such as many of the Halwyn Centre residents.
It’s revealed an impasse between federal and state jurisdictions over which level of government is responsible for nursing care under the NDIS.
In his letter to the Halwyn families, Mr Miles wrote: “I share your concerns that the National Disability Insurance Agency has decided not to accredit and therefore fund the ongoing accommodation service at the Halwyn Centre, which could result in the permanent closure of the centre.
“I have also had many families share with me that they are concerned about whether their loved one will receive the same level of care and support in a different residential setting.”
Mr Miles said the Palaszczuk Government would continue to negotiate with the Federal Government to resolve shortcomings that had been identified in the NDIS funding and transition arrangements as it was being rolled out across Queensland.
He said he had asked Mr Fletcher in their teleconference to provide advice on options for Halwyn residents within two weeks.
“For as long as it takes I will continue to call on the Federal Government and the NDIA to fulfil its obligations to all those who currently call the Halwyn Centre home,” Mr Miles said in his letter to the families.
Kate Jones, the Queensland Tourism Minister and Member for Cooper, which takes in the Halwyn Centre, called on Prime Minister Scott Morrison to commit extra funding to keep the facility open.
“The NDIS failed the families at the Halwyn Centre for one reason — it’s not fully funded,” Ms Jones said.
In its latest quarterly report, the NDIA conceded “new financial pressures are emerging from the interface of the NDIS with the health system”.
“The NDIA is working with Commonwealth and State/Territory governments to better define the boundaries between the health system and the NDIS,” the report said.
“The NDIA is committed to the delivery of a financially sustainable scheme that is focused on achieving outcomes for all its participants.”
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