The NDS Helpdesk team have chosen the top five questions and responses from the past month. These questions cover NDIS Practice Standards and the NDIS price guide. Got a question on your mind? NDS members can ask the Helpdesk

Question 1

Can you please advise if services can seek PPE funding for SDA/SIL and in-home supports for State-directed lockdown periods, where the CHO has mandated PPE requirements?

Answer

The Latest advice from NDIS webpage notes that from 28 June 2021 providers Australia-wide can claim up to $27 per participant, per worker, per day for support worker personal protective equipment (PPE) from certain participant plans when delivering assistance with daily life.

The NDIS webpage For providers - coronavirus (COVID-19) notes:

'Support worker PPE can be claimed from participant plans, with the participant’s agreement.

To be eligible to claim for PPE in the areas and dates outlined in the NDIS COVID Addendum, providers must be delivering assistance with daily life in one of these 3 registration groups:

• 0104 High Intensity Daily Personal Activities
• 0107 Daily Personal Activities
• 0115 Assistance with Daily Life Tasks in a Group or Shared Living Arrangement.

The PPE price limit is up to $27 per participant, per worker, per day.
Providers can only claim for costs that were actually incurred and must have the agreement of the participant.'

(Note: given the changing Covid situation, this advice may change. Also, NDS is currently advocating for direct invoicing of PPE costs to NDIA rather than via participant plans)

Question 2

Will the NDIS fund counselling or mental health support for parents of children with disability?

Answer

The short answer is no. NDIS plans are, for the most part, designed to fund supports for the individual NDIS participant themselves -- rather than others such as their family members.

The exception is Short Term Accommodation, which includes provision for respite 'which aims to support ongoing caring arrangements between participants and their carers [allowing for] the opportunity for the participant to be supported by someone else whilst providing their carer with short term breaks from their usual caring responsibilities' (pp. 46-47, NDIS Price Guide). While this has the potential to assist a carer's mental health, it's important to recognise it is not a substitute for mental health support. More detail is available from p46 of the Price Guide.

It may be possible that the parent's mental health is such that they are eligible for NDIS supports associated with psychosocial disability. This would involve the parent gaining access to the NDIS themselves, however, rather than relying on their child's package. Further information about mental health and the NDIS is available on the NDIS website.

Question 3

We are a registered provider and have been requested by a plan-managed client to provide employment support but we are not registered for this support. Are we able to provide this support without being registered?

Answer

If a provider is not registered to provide supports in employment, they would need to vary their registration to include the registration group ‘Specialised supported employment’. They can do this by using the Request for Variation of Registration form.

Question 4

What is the 2021-22 rate for SLES – it seems it’s yet to be released by the NDIA?

Answer

The SLES rate for 2021-22 is unchanged from the 2020-21 rate. The NDIA have confirmed the SLES rate will not be indexed for the current financial year.

Question 5

Do most providers just issue a new service agreement with each participant when the Price Guide changes?

Answer

Providers can include a clause in the service agreement which allows them to increase prices in line with pricing changes and the introduction of new pricing arrangements introduced by the NDIA. Having said this, the provider must also ensure that changes are negotiated with the participant and that the participant agrees to changes being made. The most recent Pricing Arrangements and Limits also note that providers should not indicate in any way to participants that the prices that they charge are set by the NDIA.

Providers have approached this in a number of ways. Some providers have utilised a service agreement amendment sheet: this page would accompany the existing agreement and outline the new elements. Others use a schedule of supports (a table of the supports provided and their unit cost) updating this schedule, clearly detailing when the new arrangements and price limits come into effect, what the price or cost of supports will be and that approval from the participant will suffice. It is important to always ensure the participant receives a copy of the full agreement when changes are made.

Providers generally review their service agreement with the commencement of a new plan. This allows the participant and the provider to check in and make sure the agreement is meeting their needs and commitments are being upheld.