Ann Sudmalis (Gilmore, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I speak today in support of the Medicare Levy Amendment (National Disability Insurance Scheme Funding) Bill 2017. Every day, we meet local heroes who are dealing with a huge range of difficulties. One of the most touching is to meet a person with a disability who inspires and impresses with their attitude to life and their determination to make a difference. Among my local disability champions is Brad Rossiter, with his prosthetic legs and his kidney and pancreas transplants. He and his wife Lorrae are the founders and co-chairs of the Eurobodalla Renal Support Group. Brad is a star for kidney health awareness and diabetes awareness and a champion for organ donor registration. He's a recipient under the NDIS. Lauren Ball, only 11 years of age and already with a lung transplant, attends Huskisson Public School. Her aim also is to raise awareness for organ donation registration. Jackie Kay, from her position in a wheelchair, is the chairperson of It's Heaven Inclusive Tourism and Hansa Sailing Systems, and she is the first advocate for Sailability Shoalhaven. Luke Stojanovic and his mum, Kim, helped to raise over $77,000 towards the brain injury unit at Liverpool Hospital. Luke was a devil-may-care motorcycle rider who had the misfortune to have a very serious injury. He was hospitalised for many months. It's been a difficult journey for his whole family. They had to learn sign language. He had the use of only one hand and was told he would never be able to speak again. He's a cheeky young man with a great sense of humour. Last time we met he spoke, carefully. Clearly, it was taking an enormous amount of concentration, but he was speaking. He was speaking about his next quest. He's fired up and ready to fundraise again to get a disability access point for people to get to the water in beautiful Jervis Bay. 'Big Red' Brent Peter Kelly, is the one, would you believe? He keeps telling you: 'I am the one'. Brent's presence at any event is unforgettable, because he's so enthusiastic and loves life. He was at the launch of the NDIS in both the Illawarra and the Shoalhaven. He said in his opening comments: 'I just want to say thank you. I want to thank you, the Australian taxpayer, for paying the NDIS. I couldn't go out shopping and I couldn't go to the pictures.' His mother told me: 'Now I can have some time to do craft and meet my friends for coffee, and know that Brent is happy.' They are great fans of the NDIS.

Each time I meet a person with a disability or one of their carers I'm both inspired and humbled by their tenacity and their strength in the face of adversity. They are the reason for my absolute support for increasing the Medicare levy paid by taxpayers to increase the amount to be allocated to the NDIS. This is a government initiative begun under the previous Labor government and with bipartisan support. The NDIS should continue to have this support as it will help all those in our community in need of supported living. The NDIS is one of the largest social and economic reforms in Australia's history and is the best way forward to provide support for people with a disability, their families and carers in Australia. Eventually, the NDIS will support a better life for around 460,000 Australians under the age of 65 with a permanent and significant disability. It will help their families and their carers.

The NDIS represents a significant shift in the delivery of services for people with a disability, from the old ad hoc welfare model to one of empowerment and participation. It all began on 1 July 2016. It was a gradual three-year rollout across Australia. Conceptually, the existing Commonwealth and state based services are supposed to continue until eligible people start to receive their support from the NDIS. At times this continuity doesn't happen, it's hoped that people with disability will continue to live more independent lives, engage with their community, and enter the workforce for the first time or return to work while also receiving the services and equipment they need. Essentially, the NDIS is designed to give people choice and control so they can get the help they need when and where they need it to live an ordinary life. We know the greatest gains in people's wellbeing and independence come from living in a community that's accessible, inclusive and welcoming to those with a disability.

While the NDIS represents a significant and historic change to the landscape for disability, it remains only part of the story. Not all people with a disability will be eligible. There are 4.2 million Australians living with a disability. Governments and communities will continue to have a role in supporting people who are outside of the eligibility criteria. In just three months, up until June this year, the scheme grew by over 15,000 participants with an approved plan. More than 6,000 young children have entered the system via the early childhood intervention approach, which is available for littlies under six. I have to say at this point that I have a dream to try and resolve. In the regions, getting children to a point of assessment can be difficult and at times there's a waiting list, causing delay and frustration for the affected child and their parent, grandparent or carer. How good would it be to have a roving assessment team from the NDIS that could go to a child's home or school? It would be wonderful if that could happen.

Every person who has a compassionate heart knows the NDIS currently suffers from being underfunded. Every person with a compassionate heart knows that the pathway to alleviate this is to increase the Medicare levy by the tiny amount of 0.5 per cent. Recently the Prime Minister visited Yumaro, where we demonstrated a brilliant place for disability employment and celebrated 100,000 NDIS plans having been established.

It would be a rare thing indeed for any new program to come into being without a few teething programs. We all aspire to perfection but acknowledge that all rollouts, particularly from government, will have a few hiccups. We must have systems in place to address the bumps as they occur. The Commonwealth and New South Wales governments and the NDIA are working together to make sure that the NDIS stays on track.

It's well recognised that the NDIS will also be a major driver of new jobs and career pathways for the disability services as well as creating employment opportunities in the community. In New South Wales, it's expected that the number of jobs in the disability sector will grow from more than 24,000 to well over 48,000, some part time and some full time due to the different nature of demand. The bilateral agreement for the full scheme rollout was signed by the Commonwealth and state governments on 16 September 2015, giving certainty to people across New South Wales that this landmark scheme is on track and on its way.

Around 20 per cent of Australians have some form of disability. That's one in five. That's more than four million of us nationwide and more than 1.3 million in New South Wales alone. The NDIS targets people with permanent and significant disability who need help with the kinds of everyday tasks that each and every one of us takes for granted. To be eligible for that program, you have to have a permanent significant disability; you have to be less than 65; you must be an Australian citizen or permanent resident or a New Zealand citizen who holds a protected special category visa; and you have to be part of the area where it's being rolled out. One aspect of concern relates to the change from disability to pension age. In fact, if a person who meets the age requirements of the scheme joins the NDIS before turning 65, that person can choose to stay on the NDIS for life if necessary.

Everyone who enters the NDIS will first need to get the plan, the big plan. The first plan is the participant's entry point to the NDIS and the start of their ongoing relationship with the scheme. In addition, the plan will identify the reasonable and necessary supports required to meet the immediate needs of the participant and start to identify and achieve their goals. Once access to the NDIS is confirmed, the participant or nominee will be contacted by someone from the NDIS and then also pass that on to the NDIA to have an actual planning conversation. Most people's first plans will be completed over the phone. Sometimes it is not so; they'll go and have a visit, although the phone seems to be the major one. Everyone will have the same access to supports and services irrespective of how their planning conversation takes place. Once an NDIS plan has been established, it'll be reviewed periodically and, if circumstances change or it needs a further review, it can be requested at any stage.

We have heaps of people with disability in New South Wales—as I said, over 1.3 million as determined by the 2015 survey of disability, ageing and carers in New South Wales, compared to the more than four million nationally. Both of those figures are likely to be a great deal higher this year. There will be a significant and predicted growth in services required to meet demand, with an increase of more than 64,000 participants. Already there is an identified need for an extra $3.4 billion in services, as well as the increase in the level of annual expenditure, which is estimated to grow from $3.4 billion to $6.8 billion by the end of 2019.

This is why we absolutely must have bipartisan support to change the Medicare levy. Including all the people with specific needs and helping them to have a better quality of life, as well as helping the quality of life of the carer, is an essential moral and political responsibility. I ask every Australian to question the motives of those in opposition when this policy of a universal Medicare levy was okay while they were in government but isn't okay now. Why, when we know how hard life is for those with a disability, would we play with the source of funding to make the program more universally accessible? To quote the Treasurer:

Sustainably funding our most important programs—such as the National Disability Insurance Scheme—is real, tangible change, not just an empty promise or hot air. It's real, and it will be real to the hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of Australians who will be impacted by this scheme in a positive way.

We also know that Australians support this change because they believe in looking after their mates, no matter what their own individual means or circumstances are.

In our nation, we are most generous when people are going through the worst of times—flood events, bushfires, road tragedies and, more recently, idiot behaviour in city areas that puts people at risk. We gather around, we send support, we donate financially and we are at our best. Disability is not a transition occurrence, so the funding cannot be a transition arrangement, nor can it be an ad hoc appeal to the generosity of Australians. We look after each other as a country. We don't look to our ability to see how much we can do. We instinctively help as best we can. This is an essential part of our Australian character, our values and our community mateship, and it is that character that is the basis of knowing the general Australian population's support. Again I quote the Treasurer, the Hon. Scott Morrison:

It is that character that I have seen demonstrated around the country in response to our call for Australians to support their mates who live with a disability and the families who live with those Australians, and care for them, along with their workmates, their friends, their associates and those they randomly come in contact with on the street and in public transport. It is about the empathy and the care and the passion that Australians feel for their mates, particularly those who suffer with a disability.

Just last week at the launch of friends of Paralympics sport I met Dylan Alcott. He's an amazing athlete with his most recent achievements being gold medals in singles and doubles tennis. I can't play this game at all well, let alone in a wheelchair. He's such a bright and vibrant young man. Dylan thinks many people have major low self-esteem if they have a disability. One in five, as I said, has a disability, and we've got a long way to go to make that less of a problem.

Acknowledging the need for all Australians to help with the increased need for funding is another way of raising awareness for those with a disability. Australians place a great deal of faith in our government's range of essential services. No-one can truly prepare for the hardship or cost of these responsibilities.

I heard a few comments regarding the extra 0.5 per cent of Medicare not being needed to fund the NDIS. What government, particularly a Liberal coalition government, likes to increase taxes unless there's an absolute need to do so? Are the current and new Labor MPs unaware that the original NDIS did not include those people with mental health issues, that these people were added in during the final months of the Labor government in 2013? We absolutely must—and in my notes I've underlined 'must'—enable access to the NDIS for those suffering mental health issues. I mention this particularly as just this weekend we had yet another regional suicide, reflecting the absolute need for mental health investment as part of the NDIS.

So I say to those considering this weird idea of not voting for the very sensible solution of increasing the Medicare levy to fund the missing dollars for the NDIS: have a chat to your local disability constituents. Ask them for their opinions. Look them in the eye and tell them: 'I'm not voting for this. I'm not going to vote for this extension of the levy. I'm not going to ensure certainty for your funding, so you can't change your wheelchair next time you need one.' I'd be very surprised if you could do that.

Labor, get on board. You expanded the system to make sure mental health was part of the disability spectrum. It needs to be funded, so get on board, help fund it and give certainty to every single one of those people with a disability who are depending on that vote—absolutely depending on that vote—for certainty for their planning for the rest of their lives.

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