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Autistic drivers could find their licences in legal limbo depending on where they live after new standards introduced

By bobb |

Danielle Cahill

Thousands of autistic drivers could find their Australian licences are in legal limbo due to changes quietly made last year to the national standards that govern who is considered fit to drive.

The national 2022 Assessing Fitness to Drive standards are the first to list autism as a condition that "should be assessed individually", which may involve a practical assessment.

NDIA used the law to ‘exhaust’ participants

By bobb |

Rick Morton

A leaked review document shows the National Disability Insurance Agency used ‘legalistic brinkmanship’ to force disabled people to ‘bargain away their rights’.

A backlog of thousands of National Disability Insurance Scheme tribunal appeals was almost entirely artificial, not based on proper legislative interpretation and driven instead by “external pressures” to rein in costs of the scheme, according to independent reviewers chosen to work through the stricken cases.

Why do some children lose their autism diagnosis?

By bobb |
A study published 2 October in JAMA Pediatrics reports that 79 of 213 children who were diagnosed with autism at 12 to 36 months of age no longer met criteria for the condition at 5 to 7 years old. Spectrum asked autism researcher Deborah Fein, Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Psychological Sciences at the University of Connecticut in Storrs, for her thoughts on the findings. In a 2013 study, Fein and her colleagues described a sample of people who lost their autism diagnosis.

‘Quick and dirty’ NDIS review faces backlash from disability advocates

By bobb |

Stephen Lunn

A “quick and dirty” review of the $35bn-a-year National Disability ­Insurance Scheme will not ­address its longstanding problems in time to meet national cabinet’s hard cost-control targets set for three years from now, advocates have warned, signalling a fresh battle over its future.

There's still time to have your say in the NDIS Review

By convenor |

Closed 15/9/2023

Later inputs (until 23/10/2023) will inform the National Autism Strategy.

We recognise that there are many things that compete for your time so if you wanted to have a say you still can. If you have had a say but realised you wanted to add something more than please do so.

This survey uses a 0-10 scale and if you want to add free text you can. You can answer one topic or many. It is up to you. The survey is available at: 

NDIS future depends on states providing more mainstream disability support: Bruce Bonyhady

By bobb |

Stephen Lunn

The future of the National Disability Insurance Scheme depends on state and local governments stepping up to provide community-wide services for the millions of Australians with disability who don’t qualify for the scheme, the head of the NDIS review warns.

This is particularly so for children with developmental concerns and delay, who should be receiving “foundational supports” through maternal and child health services, early childhood education and schools, Bruce Bonyhady said.

National Disability Insurance Agency accused of ‘failing’ young children with autism

By bobb |

Stephanie Convery

Committee hears every family Autism Partnerships Australia worked with who challenged their NDIS funding rejection was eventually approved for intensive support

The National Disability Insurance Agency is failing young children severely affected by autism by rejecting their claims for intensive support funding only to do an about-face after families have spent months in a lengthy, expensive tribunal process, a parliamentary committee has heard.

One mum’s advice to Bill Shorten on how to save money in the NDIS

By bobb |

Lynda Fallon

As the cost of the NDIS balloons, and the government looks for ways to make savings, one battle-weary mum offers some budgeting suggestions.

Dear Mr Shorten, firstly, I want to say thank you for the NDIS. It’s a scheme with the very best of intentions to give people like my son, Ben, their best chance at fulfilling their potential — and I love that we are lucky enough to live in a country where people in power care.