Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Finance) Share this | Hansard source

I move general business notices of motion Nos 1058 and 1061 together:

GENERAL BUSINESS NOTICE OF MOTION NO. 1058

That the Senate—

(a) notes that the Australian Government proposes to introduce 'independent assessments' for access and planning decisions for the National Disability Insurance Scheme's (NDIS) 400,000 participants;

(b) recognises that:

(i) people with disability, their families, carers, service providers and their representative organisations were not consulted on independent assessments before they were announced by the Government,

(ii) independent assessments will provide a one-size-fits-all approach to access and planning while adding bureaucratic hoops for participants to jump through, and

(iii) neither the Productivity Commission report, nor the review conducted by David Tune AO PSM, support the introduction of independent assessments in the form proposed; and

(c) expresses its concern that, as the Government only returned $1.5 billion of the

$4.6 billion it cut from the NDIS, independent assessments are just another way to take support from Australians with disability by restricting access to the scheme and limiting plan funding; and

(d) calls on the Government to:

(i) immediately pause the rollout of independent assessments,

(ii) hold a genuine, transparent consultation process, and

(iii) work with participants, families, carers and the sector to co-design the best solution to address the issues of consistency and fairness in NDIS access and planning identified by the Tune Review.

GENERAL BUSINESS NOTICE OF MOTION NO. 1061

That the Senate—

(a) notes that:

(i) the number of people diagnosed with dementia in Australia is projected to grow from 472,000 to over one million by 2058,

(ii) over half of people living in residential aged care have a diagnosis of dementia, with the actual prevalence likely to be as high as 70%,

(iii) the final report of the Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety found that the quality of aged care that people living with dementia receive is 'abysmal',

(iv) the overuse of medication is rampant and not enough emphasis is put on preventative care and other treatments,

(v) staff do not receive adequate training and do not have a full understanding of the symptoms and needs of people living with dementia,

(vi) the report signalled out dementia care as one of four priority areas for immediate action, and

(vii) despite the complicated needs of people living with dementia and the disproportionate impact COVID-19 had on them and their families, dementia was not even mentioned in the Government's National COVID-19 Aged Care Plan; and

(b) calls on the Government to urgently address their years of neglect of the aged care system, which is a national disgrace, including the experience of hundreds of thousands of Australians with dementia.