Major changes have been made to the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), including officially banning sex work claims.
NDIS Minister Bill Shorten announced a sweeping reform to the scheme and what types of support participants can access.
Under the revamp, NDIS participants won’t be able to have access to sex work, dating apps, concerts, reiki, crystal and cuddle therapy and vapes.
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The changes will come into effect on October 3 and come after a lengthy wait for Australians with a disability for the final list.
NDIS participants will be given a one-year grace period to get used to the changes and administrators will have the power to waive mistaken claims under $1500.
Those using a support now under the new banned list will also be allowed to retain the service until their NDIS plan expires.
Shorten said new guidelines would give Australians using NDIS more clarity.
“We are just putting certain therapies beyond all reasonable doubt that they are not what service providers should be offering,” he said.
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“We’re just being really clear that this scheme is going to be run properly, transparently, in the best of participants, not some service providers who are selling therapies, which we cannot find much in the way of scientific or evidentiary basis.”
The government say the reforms will save taxpayers $14 billion over four years.
Shorten previously vowed to rule out sexual services under the NDIS after arguing it was “not a sustainable proposition”.
He said the vast majority of people “aren’t seeking these services”.
“I think the vast majority of Australians are pleased to see that the scheme is sustainable, but they also want to see clear rules,” Shorten said today when asked about the exclusion of sex therapy.
Shorten also said he will “do as much as we can” before he departs federal politics and his role as NDIS Minister in February 2025.
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