Extending support across the country

DisabilityCare Australia launch

DisabilityCare Australia will commence operations from July 2013 across four jurisdictions and from July 2014 in a further two jurisdictions.

Launch locations will be established in the Hunter region of New South Wales, the Barwon region of Victoria, in South Australia for young children and in Tasmania for young adults from July 2013, and in the Barkly region of the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory from July 2014.

National roll out

The Australian Government is committed to the full national roll out of DisabilityCare Australia in 2018‑19.

The Government will provide funding of $11.7 billion to DisabilityCare Australia in 2019‑20, the first year after full national rollout.

New South Wales was the first jurisdiction to commit to full scheme, followed by South Australia, the Australian Capital Territory, Tasmania, Victoria, Queensland and the Northern Territory.

The roll out of DisabilityCare Australia in these jurisdictions will cover around 90 per cent of the total Australian population.

The Government will continue to work with Western Australia to achieve national coverage by the end of 2018‑19.

Developing the National Injury Insurance Scheme (NIIS)

The Government has also been working with all jurisdictions on developing the NIIS, a federation of state based no fault schemes providing lifetime care and support to people who newly acquire a catastrophic injury from an accident.

As a first step, the six DisabilityCare Australia launch jurisdictions have agreed to national minimum standards for motor vehicle accidents that will ensure accident victims receive the support they need over their lifetime.

Similar no fault arrangements for medical, workplace, and general accidents are also being considered.