The Morrison Government is committed to ensuring the safety of National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) participants during the current COVID-19 outbreak in New South Wales (NSW).
More than 61,000 NDIS participants across Australia have now received at least one dose of the vaccine. We continue to see strong growth in numbers across all states and territories.
Minister for the National Disability Insurance Scheme Senator the Hon Linda Reynolds CSC, said for NDIS participants within Phase 1a in NSW, provider-led vaccination hubs are operating in North Parramatta, Newcastle, Islington and Baulkham Hills.
“In a COVID-19 outbreak where there is ongoing community transmission and extended lockdown periods, it’s been critical that we’ve been able to quickly introduce or reinstate temporary measures to support people in those areas,” Minister Reynolds said.
“The Commonwealth is now also prioritising efforts in NSW to provide in-reach for eligible residential disability accommodation located in the declared COVID-19 hotspots, Greater Sydney, the Blue Mountains, the Central Coast and Wollongong.
“I strongly encourage people with disability, their care and support workers and their carers to get vaccinated through the five streams now available to increase protection for themselves and their community.
“I’d like to thank disability service providers, support workers and carers of people with disability for their work in support of the vaccine rollout to this vulnerable group.”
In addition to dedicated disability vaccination hubs, the following measures are in place:
- All NDIS participants aged 16 years and over and carers aged 16 years and over of NDIS participants of any age are eligible to receive the vaccine.
- Disability workers can access the vaccine at Commonwealth SONIC vaccine clinics in Campbelltown, Sydney CBD, Macquarie and Blacktown.
- A national support payment of $150 per participant for disability providers to assist NDIS supported independent living participants eligible within Phase 1a to attend offsite locations, including Commonwealth hubs, state clinics and GPs.
- The National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) reinstated a measure, effective from 26 June, to enable NDIS providers in declared COVID-19 hotspot areas of NSW to directly claim the cost of PPE for disability support workers in light of the current COVID-19 outbreak.
- The NDIA also reinstated and expanded a measure to allow eligible registered NDIS providers Australia-wide to seek participant approval to access NDIS participant plan funds to claim costs for PPE used for supports delivered in person by a worker due to higher than normal PPE requirements.
- The NDIA has continued to make available additional temporary support items (for deep cleaning, higher intensity staffing requirements, professional laundering) to assist participants living in supported independent living arrangements where additional supports are required due to a COVID-19 outbreak.
- The NDIA maintains a Clinical First Responder capability that, as a last resort, can provide emergency intervention, clinical support and infection control should there be a COVID-19 outbreak or positive infection in a NDIS residential disability accommodation setting.
For more information on where participants and carers can receive their vaccine, visit health.gov.au/covid19-vaccines