The Productivity Commission is proposing NDIS have “Market Driven Quality”. This makes it easy on the NDIA (National Disability Insurance Agency), but hard on the person with a disability and their family, as they have to shop for service suitability and quality. And, services which operate on just the person’s federal funded service package, will be exempt from service quality standards… Unless NDIA develops a standards package.

In this regard, it is interesting to see the DHS in Victoria is just in the process of developing yet another standards package. CSO (non government) service providers just get settled on being compliant with a DHS standards package, and the DHS change it. So here we go again! CSOs will just get settled on this “One DHS Standards” package, and the NDIA will develop standards for its individualised funding packages.

If the NDIA does not develop service quality standards, it will be easy for commercial (for-profit) service providers to enter the disability service market!

Market driven service quality is great for telecommunications, for example. Just one phone call, and you have a fresh service provider!

Moving a person with an intellectual disability/Autism can be very difficult and time consuming. A task not to be taken lightly! In practice, those with high support needs, and little or no family support, will be left in a service "not suiting their needs" - despite having choice to move, through a federally funded individual support package (ISP) under NDIS.

We call on the Productivity Commission, not to rely on “Market Driven Service Quality” for the NDIS, but to ensure all ISPs have mandatory service quality standards attached.