Most of what is in the 2008-2009 NSW Budget that impacts directly on people with disabilities and their carers was known before the Budget's release, but it did include a 6.9% increase in funding.
Analyses of the Budget's provision for people with disabilities and their carers is available from:
NCOSS 's analysis of the Department of Ageing, Disability and Home Care section of the NSW Budget:
· Budgeted allocation to DADHC of $2billion in 2008-09, a 6.9% increase or $130million more than last year. Over $1.2billion of this will be provided to NGOs in grants and subsidies.
· Home & Community Care (HACC): growth funding to the NSW HACC Program will be around 7.2% or $37.2million in 2008-09. This allocation appears to match the Commonwealth growth allocation announced in the Federal Budget. 2008-09 is the first year of the HACC Triennial Plan, now awaiting Commonwealth approval. The priorities for this Plan are people with dementia, people who are financially disadvantaged, people who are socially excluded or locationally disadvantaged, people from culturally and linguistically diverse communities, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, people in remote and isolated areas. There are 7 strategic directions for this Triennial Plan: simplifying access strategies,-using the Hunter Demonstration Project; better outcomes for clients and value for money; streamlined risk based strategies for performance quality assurance; building an evidence base for HACC; innovative approaches to service delivery; improvements to the Minimum Data Set; equitable allocations across NSW. Due to the weight of escalating demand, NCOSS proposed an increase by NSW to HACC of 20% in 2008-09 which has not been met.
· The Home Care Service of NSW will receive $207million in 2008-09, an increase of 2.5% or $5m. This will provide 4 million hours to 42,000 people per month. There will be an independent review of the Referral and Assessment Centre (RAC) and implemented improvements as well as another Customer Satisfaction Survey in 2009. The Home Care Service receives 32% of the HACC budget in NSW.
· Disability Services: The third year of the Stronger Together Disability Plan has been fully funded at $89.3 million in 2008-09. Increases this year include $4.6million for therapy services, $9.1million for post school programs for 1000 new school leavers, $2million for 400 Intensive Support Packages for young people and families, $1.5m for intensive assistance with challenging behaviours to 410 children and families $7.5m for 100 new Attendant Care places, $5.1m for an extra 340 day program places, $7.6m for younger people in nursing homes, $38.7m for an additional 280 supported accommodation places for adults with disability. NCOSS believes that all new supported accommodation places must be delivered in accordance with the NSW Disability Services Act and not through the re-development of disability institutions or large residential centres. There are still 2400 people with disability in institutions in NSW. NCOSS welcomes the continued implementation under the Stronger Together Plan, but proposed a raft of spending measures totalling over $62.5m in 2008-09 so that NSW can move away from crisis service provision to people with disability.
· Ageing Program: Funding to the Ageing Program has been maintained at $5.8m in this budget. There have been no increases to this program, despite the rapid ageing of the population, in several years. The NSW Government’s commitment to older people is fully described in the NSW Towards 2030 Plan, which sets out action priorities to prepare for the challenge of population ageing. In its Pre-Budget Submission, NCOSS proposed an allocation of $4m to support positive ageing in NSW.
· Capital Expenditure: In 2008-09 DADHC will spend $115.2million in capital expenditure in both HACC and Disability services programs. This includes $35 million for new accommodation facilities under Stronger Together, $25.8m for the redevelopment of large residential centres at Grosvenor, Lachlan and Peat Island, $35m for improvements and replacements of accommodation for people with disability.
· Commonwealth State Territory Disability Agreement: While an interim arrangements were agreed at the Disability Ministers’ meeting of May 30, the current CSTDA has been extended to end 2008 pending negotiations. The previously announced Disability Assistance Package will now be allocated under the new CSTDA and a National Disability Strategy is under development. In the meantime, NSW will receive 33.7% of the Commonwealth’s new $100m capital allocation for supported accommodation for 309 people with disability. Details have not yet been finalised about how this funding will be delivered.
· Workforce Strategy: NDS NSW has been allocated $3.3million to develop a workforce strategy to deal with workforce recruitment, qualifications and shortages. This will cover both non-government and government workforces and will include the disability and HACC sectors. Contracts for this work are currently being finalised so more information will be available shortly.
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