National Disability Agreement Review
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Review of the National Productivity Commission Disability Agreement Study Report January 2019 Commonwealth of Australia 2019 ISBN 978-1-74037-671-6 (online) ISBN 978-1-74037-670-9 (print) Except for the Commonwealth Coat of Arms and content supplied by third parties, this copyright work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia licence. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/au. In essence, you are free to copy, communicate and adapt the work, as long as you attribute the work to the Productivity Commission (but not in any way that suggests the Commission endorses you or your use) and abide by the other licence terms. Use of the Commonwealth Coat of Arms Terms of use for the Coat of Arms are available from the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet’s website: https://www.pmc.gov.au/government/commonwealth-coat-arms Third party copyright Wherever a third party holds copyright in this material, the copyright remains with that party. Their permission may be required to use the material, please contact them directly. Attribution This work should be attributed as follows, Source: Productivity Commission, Review of the National Disability Agreement, Study Report. If you have adapted, modified or transformed this work in anyway, please use the following, Source: based on Productivity Commission data, Review of the National Disability Agreement, Study Report. An appropriate reference for this publication is: Productivity Commission 2019, Review of the National Disability Agreement, Study Report, Canberra. Publications enquiries Media, Publications and Web, phone: (03) 9653 2244 or email: [email protected] The Productivity Commission The Productivity Commission is the Australian Government’s independent research and advisory body on a range of economic, social and environmental issues affecting the welfare of Australians. Its role, expressed most simply, is to help governments make better policies, in the long term interest of the Australian community. The Commission’s independence is underpinned by an Act of Parliament. Its processes and outputs are open to public scrutiny and are driven by concern for the wellbeing of the community as a whole. Further information on the Productivity Commission can be obtained from the Commission’s website (www.pc.gov.au). Foreword The National Disability Agreement (NDA) is one of several nationally significant sector-wide agreements between the Australian and State and Territory Governments. This study is a review of the NDA, and is the first of the Productivity Commission’s reviews of the agreements. The report sets out our proposals for a new, reinvigorated NDA that would unify all elements of the national disability policy landscape. Ultimately, agreement and implementation of a new NDA is the responsibility of the Australian and State and Territory Governments. The Commission visited every capital city as part of its consultative processes. The Commission is grateful to the many individuals and organisations who have taken the time to contribute to this study, in particular, those who participated in visits, attended roundtables and provided submissions. This includes the Australian Government and all State and Territory Governments, the Australian Local Government Association, the National Disability Insurance Agency and a number of groups representing people with disability and their carers, services providers and researchers. Thank you for your assistance and contributions. Robert Fitzgerald AM Commissioner January 2019 FOREWORD iii Terms of reference I, Scott Morrison, Treasurer, pursuant to Parts 2 and 4 of the Productivity Commission Act 1998, hereby request that the Commission undertake a review into the National Disability Agreement (NDA). Background The NDA is a high-level agreement between the Commonwealth and state and territory governments relating to the provision of disability services for people with disability. It is a key accountability mechanism for the achievement of outcomes in the disability services sector, supported by Commonwealth and state own source funding provided separate to the agreement. It contains roles and responsibilities for each level of government and joins these efforts together through nationally agreed objectives and outcomes to measure performance in the delivery of services to people with disability, their families and carers. Scope The intent of this review is to consider: the relevance of the objectives, outcomes and outputs of the NDA in the context of contemporary policy settings progress against the performance framework of the NDA and the extent to which it has supported improved outcomes for people with disability, their families and carers including performance benchmarks and indicators, and associated timeframes and reporting responsibilities the roles and responsibilities of the Commonwealth, and state and territory governments under the NDA whether the NDA needs updating in light of these considerations, to reflect the changing policy landscape, including the introduction of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) and the National Disability Strategy (NDS). iv REVIEW OF THE NATIONAL DISABILITY AGREEMENT In undertaking this review, the Commission should have regard to: Current reform priorities including: – the NDIS rollout including the progressive transition of disability services to full-scheme arrangements (noting that not all jurisdictions are at the same point in transition) – implementation of the NDS. The interface between the NDIS and mainstream service systems, noting that many people who are unable to directly access the NDIS may access support through alternative service providers, mainstream services, and their communities. Responsibility for ensuring that people with disability have access to government services, provided by the Commonwealth and state and territory governments, together with development of agreed performance measures. Process The Commission is to consult broadly, including with people with disability, their families and carers, other stakeholders and the Commonwealth and state and territory governments, and report within eight months of receipt of the terms of reference. The Hon Scott Morrison MP Treasurer [Received 25 May 2018] TERMS OF REFERENCE v Contents Foreword iii Terms of reference iv Contents vi Abbreviations viii Key points 2 Overview 3 Recommendations and findings 29 1 About this review 39 1.1 Background to the study 39 1.2 About the National Disability Agreement 41 1.3 The broader disability policy landscape 46 1.4 The Commission’s task and approach to the review 50 1.5 Consultation during the course of the review 52 2 The purpose of the NDA 53 2.1 Does the NDA fulfil a relevant purpose? 54 2.2 What should be the overarching agreement? 56 2.3 A revised disability policy architecture 60 2.4 Updating the outcomes of the NDA 64 3 Service gaps and responsibilities of governments 69 3.1 Reflecting disability policy in the NDA 71 3.2 Unclear responsibilities contribute to service gaps 82 3.3 How the new NDA could help address gaps 94 4 Policy commitments 105 4.1 Where are policy commitments specified? 106 4.2 Linking outcomes, policies and evaluation 111 vi REVIEW OF THE NATIONAL DISABILITY AGREEMENT 5 Progress against the NDA’s performance framework 121 5.1 Why measure performance? 122 5.2 The NDA’s performance reporting framework 123 5.3 Progress towards the NDA outcomes 127 5.4 Evaluating the NDA performance reporting architecture 132 5.5 Developing performance indicators and targets 134 5.6 A comprehensive data strategy 149 5.7 More coherent national reporting for disability? 158 5.8 Raising the profile of performance reporting 161 6 A modern disability agreement 169 6.1 A person-centred document 170 6.2 A contemporary document 177 6.3 Broader issues relating to the IGA FFR framework 180 A Public Consultation 183 B NDA performance indicators 191 B.1 Outcome A: economic participation and social inclusion 191 B.2 Outcome B: choice, wellbeing and independent living 195 B.3 Outcome C: families and carers are well supported 200 References 205 CONTENTS vii Abbreviations ABS Australian Bureau of Statistics AIHW Australian Institute of Health and Welfare APTOS Applied Principles and Tables of Services ARA Accredited Release Authority COAG Council of Australian Governments CRC COAG Reform Council DRC COAG Disability Reform Council DS NMDS Disability Services National Minimum Data Set GP General practitioner IGA FFR Intergovernmental Agreement on Federal Financial Relations ILC Information, Linkages and Capacity Building JSC Joint Standing Committee on the National Disability Insurance Scheme NCCD Nationally Consistent Collection of Data NDA National Disability Agreement NDIA National Disability Insurance Agency NDIS National Disability Insurance Scheme NDS National Disability Strategy NIIS National Injury Insurance Scheme NIRA National Indigenous Reform Agreement NPA-TRAD National Partnership Agreement on Transitioning Responsibilities for Aged Care and Disability Services OID Overcoming Indigenous Disadvantage RoGS Report on Government Services SDAC Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers SCRGSP Steering Committee for the Review of Government Service Provision SOWG Disability Reform Council Senior Officials Working Group SPP Specific Purpose Payment viii REVIEW OF THE NATIONAL DISABILITY AGREEMENT OVERVIEW Key points The current National Disability Agreement (NDA) no longer serves its purpose, has a weak influence on policy,