All Australians have an equal right to access the health system, whether or not they have a disability. The Australian health system provides health services to treat illnesses or health conditions.
You might need a disability-related health support if your disability:
- causes one of the health conditions listed in this Our Guideline, or
- you need help to manage one of the health conditions listed in this Our Guideline.
We’ll only fund a disability-related health support if it’s an NDIS support that relates to your disability. NDIS supports are the services, items and equipment we can fund or provide under the NDIS.
When we make decisions about what disability-related health supports we fund, we consider the principles we follow to create your plan.
These principles explain how we make sure you get the reasonable and necessary supports you need. These are the NDIS supports we can fund based on NDIS laws. You can use the funding in your plan to buy NDIS supports if they are related to your disability and are in-line with your plan.
Disability-related health supports may be funded for:
- someone, such as a support worker, to provide your disability-related health supports
- training for your support workers or other people who support you such as family or friends, where appropriate
- consumables – the things you use to manage your condition. For example, continence products, dressings or food products for your PEG.
We may also fund some assistive technology as a disability-related health support. When we talk about assistive technology, we mean equipment, technology and devices that help you do things you can’t do because of your disability.
This could include:
- pressure care cushions or a mattress, if you need regular care to prevent wounds or pressure sores because of your disability
- a cough assist machine, if you need support to maintain your respiratory health because of your disability.
Learn more about What does NDIS fund?
What are the disability-related health support areas?
The types of disability-related health supports we may fund are :
- Dysphagia supports: if you have trouble eating, drinking, or swallowing.
- Diabetes management supports: if you need extra help to manage your diabetes. For example, testing your blood sugar level because you can’t do this on your own.
- Continence supports: if you need products to manage your incontinence or someone to help you with toileting.
- Wound and pressure care supports: if you have slow to heal wounds. This happens when you have a condition that results in swollen arms or legs, or ongoing loss of feeling in your body and you need skin, wound and pressure care.
- Respiratory supports: if you need support, care and planning to help you breathe properly.
- Nutrition supports including meal preparation: if you need help with the way you eat. Or, understanding the food you need to look after your health.
- Podiatry and foot care supports: if you need assessment and development of a care plan to help look after your feet, ankles and lower limbs.
- Seizure supports: if you need help to monitor and manage seizures when they occur.
- Supports for accessing health or mental health services: if you have complex communication needs or behaviours.
- Specialist services and supports: if you have a recently acquired severe condition, like a spinal cord or severe acquired brain injury
- Training for support workers, family and friends: to provide support where appropriate.
You may need other disability-related health supports not covered in this list. Talk to your my NDIS contact, support coordinator or recovery coach about what you need. If it’s not an NDIS support, we can help find a service to support you.