Disability Care and Support inquiry
The Australian Government has asked the Productivity Commission to undertake a public inquiry into a long-term disability care and support scheme.
Amongst other things, this inquiry will examine:
- how a scheme should be designed and funded to better meet the long-term needs of people with disability, their families and carers
- how to determine the people most in need of support, the services that should be available to them, and service delivery arrangements
- the costs, benefits, feasibility and funding options of alternative schemes
- how the scheme will interact with the health, aged care, informal care, income support and injury insurance systems
- its impacts on the workforce
- how any scheme should be introduced and governed
- what protections and safeguards should be part of the scheme.
The Productivity Commission has released an Issues paper which outlines the prevalence and incidence of disability, rationales for and objectives of long-term disability care and support, key design elements of a new scheme, who should be eligible?, who makes the decisions?, the nature of services, how much is needed?, financing options, workforce issues, governance and infrastructure, and appraising costs, risks and benefits.
As well as receiving submissions, the Commission is holding public meetings around Australia between 7 June and 22 July. The issues paper and details of the public hearings are at http://www.pc.gov.au/projects/inquiry/disability-support
