Updates are also reported in our newsletter Carers Circle, the Carers Voice Mental Health EBulletin, on the Carers ACT website, our Facebook page: Carers ACT and on Twitter: @CarersACT To opt out of receiving these ebulletins please reply email socialmedia@carersact.org.au with subject line: No disability ebulletin Thursday 6 June | |
NATIONAL UPDATE Website New DisabilityCare Australia website click here On new website there are web pages for carers click here Conference · My Choice, My Control, My Future: DisabilityCare Australia held 23 and 24 June 2013, Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre. Click here for conference website
For people who are unable to attend, the conference will be recorded and made available online · Passed by Parliament the Medicare Levy will increase from 1.5% to 2% from 1 July 2014 to assist funding DisabilityCare Australia · Except for Western Australia other states and territories have signed funding agreements providing increased certainty for the scheme · Minister for Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs and Minister Disability Reform Jenny Macklin announced the proposed new target at the launch of the First Peoples Disability Network Australia’s 10 point plan for the implementation of DisabilityCare Australia · Commonwealth and Victorian Governments have announced head office of DisabilityCare Australia will be located in Geelong, Victoria · The Australian Government has released a DisabilityCare booklet, read HTML here or PDF here ACT UPDATE Survey · Disability ACT Client Satisfaction Survey Canberra Forums Enhanced Service Offer July 2013 • Saturday 6 July 2013, 10.30am – 12.00pm • Monday 8 July 2013, 12.30pm – 2.00pm • Wednesday 10 July 2013, 5.30pm – 7.00pm • Saturday 13 July 2013, 10.30 – 12.00pm • Wednesday 17 July 2013, 12.30 – 2.00pm If you would like to attend an Information Session on the Enhanced Service Offer please register by providing your details and the session you wish to attend: • Email: ndis@act.gov.au • Canberra Connect ph: 133 427 and ask to be registered for an Enhanced Service Offer information session Information Session on the University of Canberra Public Hospital Consumers and carers are invited to an information / Q&A session with representatives from ACT Health, to discuss: • progress on the planning and design of the sub-acute inpatient and day services; and • community consultation processes This event has been organised by Health Care Consumers’ Association Inc. in partnership with ACT Health. It will provide consumers and carers with a great opportunity to find out about an exciting and important health infrastructure project that will result in the provision of sub-acute services for people with aged care, mental health and rehabilitation needs Date: Tuesday, 18 June Time: 12.00 – 1.00pm Venue: HCCA, 100 Maitland Street, Hackett RSVPs are requested by 14 June, to Heather McGowan, ph: 6230 7800, or email heathermcgowan@hcca.org.au More information · Carers ACT has developed an Enhanced Service Offer fast fact sheet for carers here or see attached · A fact sheet for service providers on DisabilityCare in the ACT is now available here. This factsheet indicates that a participant in DisabilityCare Australia can chose whether they want to manage their funding package themselves, or have it managed by a family member, DisabilityCare Australia or an organisation providing plan management services · Information on all ACT developments can be found here including factsheets about the new service and detailed information about eligibility requirements for DisabilityCare Helpful links · New DisabiltyCare Australia website · NDIS: www.ndis.gov.au · Contact the Disability ACT Information Service Ph: 6207 1086 Fax: 6207 1371 or TTY 6205 0888 for people who are hearing impaired or Deaf · You can also contact the Mental Health Foundation Information and Referral Line ph: 6282 6658 | ACT UPDATE · Carers ACT CEO Dee McGrath is a member of the NDIS Expert Panel in the ACT · The ACT launch site will commence July 2014 and from July 2013 the ACT Government is implementing changes to services to assist transition of DisabilityCare Carers ACT hosted a Focus Group on DisabilityCare for Mental Health Carers, with Wendy Kipling a member of the ACT NDIS Taskforce, Mick Sam from the ACT Mental Health Unit and Norm Fraser, Senior Manager ACT NDIS Taskforce. Here are some key points from the presentation: · DisabilityCare (formerly NDIS) is not a silver bullet to deal with all care or disability support issues · Many mental health consumers in the ACT are hard to reach and need support · It is important to remember that many people with a mental illness or disorder may function quite well in the community by using general medical and allied health services. For this reason they would not have a psychosocial disability that would need to be supported by the DisabilityCare scheme · Accommodation and housing support are not covered by DisabilityCare. (See the NDIS rules applying to this issue below) · Many supports will be available, including many things mental health consumers or carers may not have thought of (eg golf membership), if seen as a necessary psychosocial support for the consumer · Many of the rules and operating procedures are still being developed · Services will not be block funded, nevertheless the consumer may decide to use some of their package to pay a provider for services · If the consumer does not have the capacity to manage their bills and invoices to pay a provider, DisabilityCare will hold the money and pay the provider on behalf of the consumer · A question was raised about a consumer possibly spending his entire support package at once. It was explained that budget would be drawn up and money allocated in terms of that budget regularly rather than at one time. Most mental health consumers manage their money well · A mental health consumer with current case management and other services continues to use them in consultation with the NDIS assessor · Local Area Coordination is to be introduced in the ACT and there are exciting prospects for this to be of great assistance to mental health consumers and carers. It has had success in WA and involves non-clinical local support to facilitate involvement and community participation for those with a psychosocial illness · Please see Wendy Kipling’s presentation attached · Wish to read more on psychosocial disability? NDIS Rule: Supports for Participants states that housing and community infrastructure around supported accommodation include: · Supports that build a person’s capacity to live independently in the community, including living skills training, money and household management, social and communication skills and addressing behaviours of concern, where these needs arise from a person’s functional impairment · Supports to assist a person to obtain and maintain accommodation or tenancies where these support needs arise from their functional impairment · User costs of capital in some circumstances · Reasonable and necessary home modifications to private dwellings (and legacy public or community dwellings in limited circumstances) (Source: Australian Government (2013) Draft National Disability Insurance Scheme Rules – Supports for participants, February 2013.)
· The Enhanced Service Offer is designed for ACT residents less than 65 years of age with ongoing support needs related to a disability, including psychosocial disability. Each application will be assessed and prioritised on the basis of the needs, circumstances of, and likely impact of the requested item on, the applicant · The first Grant Round will be announced 1 July – 9 August 2013. Eligible ACT residents with disabilities, including psychosocial disabilities, will be able to apply for grants under three categories: 1. Aids, equipment and minor modifications 2. Quality of life 3. Flexible supports and services · A second round will open 30 September – 8 November 2013 · Detailed Eligibility Criteria click here · People who acquire their disability after age 65 will not be able to enter DisabilityCare, but will instead be assisted by the aged care system. For Aged Care Information ph: 1800 200 422 · Applicants’ Guides are not yet available · You won’t need to apply if you are a young person with high and complex needs, who left school since 2008 and are already receiving some supports and services funded by Disability ACT. If you are not sure please ring Disability ACT Information Service on 6207 1086 · Carers ACT and Disability ACT will widely promote the grant applications when they are available Helpful links ACT Budget responses: Advocacy for Inclusion ACT Government on NDIS Attached is the pdf of this ebulletin |
Carers ACT does not necessarily agree with or endorse material and views represented in this ebulletin. | |
Important:
1. Before opening any attachments, please check for viruses.
2. This email (including any attachments) may contain confidential information for the intended recipient. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender and delete all copies of this email.
3. Any views expressed in this email are those of the sender and are not a statement of Carers ACT unless otherwise stated.
4. Electronic addresses published in this email are not conspicuous publications and Carers ACT does not consent to the receipt of commercial electronic messages
No comments:
Post a Comment