New National Disability Insurance Scheme Bills Introduced into House of Representatives

Yesterday, in the House of Representatives in Commonwealth Parliament, a number of budget related bills were introduced. Along with these were two new bills establishing DisabilityCare Australia to monitor and maintain the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).

The DisabilityCare Australia Fund Bill 2013 states its purpose as "DisabilityCare Australia will ensure that Australians with significant and permanent disabilities get the support they need and allow them to live with choice and dignity. To provide a strong and stable revenue stream for DisabilityCare Australia, and to provide certainty to people with a disability, their families and carers that it will be funded in the long term, the Government is increasing the Medicare levy by half a percentage point. All revenue raised from increasing the Medicare levy will be placed in a special fund, the DisabilityCare Australia Fund, which is being established by this Bill."

This bill, if passed, will:

• Establish the DisabilityCare Australia Fund, which consists of the DisabilityCare Australia Fund Special Account, and the investments of the DisabilityCare Australia Fund.

• Establish the DisabilityCare Australia Transitional Special Account which will fund the implementation of the National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013 in its initial period of operation.

Similarly the National Disability Insurance Scheme Legislation Amendment Bill 2013 makes amendments to clarify the range of matters relating to the National Disability Insurance Scheme that can be prescribed by rules made under the Act, to ensure they are based soundly in the principal legislation for the scheme.

In the case of the early intervention supports, where there is no intention to make rules and where key eligibility criteria are set out clearly in the legislation, the current rule-making power is being removed to avoid any risk that those provisions would not be available to people who may benefit from them.

Further amendments strengthen the governance and financial framework of the NDIS Launch Transition Agency (DisabilityCare Australia) to support the Agency’s accountable management of the significant public monies involved and to further strengthen the financial sustainability of the scheme.

Both bills were introduced yesterday 15 May 2013 and set out a 10-year plan to fund DisabilityCare nationally.

Ms Deane, a disability campaigner, stated, ''Today is a really, really important day for the country, because it means finally [disabled] kids ... will get the support they need to get out there and do the things that they want to do."

All bills data gained from the Explanatory Memoranda and bills as reproduced in TimeBase LawOne.

To read more about the introduction into Parliament, click here.

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