DisabilityCare Australia and a National Injury Insurance Scheme

Supporting people who suffer a catastrophic injury

The Commonwealth is working with State and Territory governments to develop a National Injury Insurance Scheme (NIIS) to complement DisabilityCare Australia by providing lifetime care and support to people who are newly affected by a catastrophic injury as a result of certain accidents.

Currently, the support a person receives depends on where they live, where the injury occurred and who was at fault — the system is a postcode lottery. The NIIS will build on existing State and Territory accident compensation arrangements to ensure no-one falls through the cracks.

Immediate access to medical and disability treatment

Support will be provided on a no-fault basis, which means that legal disputes can be avoided and instead a person will be able to benefit from immediate access to medical and disability care.

DisabilityCare Australia launch jurisdictions will ensure that all people who suffer a catastrophic injury from a motor vehicle accident receive lifetime care and support. The Government is continuing to work with State and Territory governments to extend the NIIS to workplace accidents, medical accidents and general accidents.

Easier access to support

Currently in some jurisdictions, if an individual is injured in a motor vehicle accident and it is unclear whether or not they are at fault, they may need to take legal action to be able to receive any compensation. If found to be at fault, they may receive no compensation, and even if they are not at fault, the legal process can delay medical treatment for many years.

Under the National Injury InsuranceScheme, support will be provided immediately after the accident because time will not be spent arguing about who was at fault. Support will potentially include medical treatment and rehabilitation, support for personal care needs, home and vehicle modifications, aids and appliances, educational support, vocational and social rehabilitation and domestic assistance.

As a first step, DisabilityCare Australia launch jurisdictions have agreed to minimum national benchmarks for motor vehicle accidents, ensuring motor vehicle accident victims who suffer a catastrophic injury will receive the support they need over their lifetime.