Autism Aspergers Advocacy Australia

Ciara Jones

Chloe Thompson feared she would never hear her children say "I love you". 

Her two sons and daughter – all aged under 10 – have level three autism.

The proportion of young children (age 0 to 6 years) diagnosed with autism in the NDIS has declined significantly since the full roll-out of the NDIS. The number of autistic NDIS participants aged 0-6 years old in the NDIS decreased 27.4% in 18 months from 30/9/2022 to 31/3/2024.

The following chart shows the number of children in the NDIS with different types of "primary disability" according to data published by the NDIS on their website. 

Updated data ... Aug 2024

Shannon Eeles

As the debate over the National Disability Insurance Scheme intensifies, profoundly autistic children are being left behind, argues Shannon Eeles.

Opinion: As the debate over the National Disability Insurance Scheme intensifies, profoundly autistic children are being left behind.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics released some analysis of data collected in 2022 for their Survey of Disability Ageing and Carers (SDAC) - see https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/health/disability/disability-ageing-and-carers-australia-summary-findings/2022 

There is a brief section on autistic Australians. It says simply: 

Autism and disability

The DSM-5 and the NDIS treat severity ratings for autism/ASD quite differently.

The DSM-5 (2013) and its update, the DSM-5-TR (2022), associate severity ratings with a diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder. 

Response received 8/7/2024 - see below

The Hon Mark Dreyfus KC MP
Attorney-General
PO Box 6022
Parliament House
Canberra ACT 2600

Dear Attorney-General

Subject: protection for AAT s42 agreements with the NDIA

A4's submission on the government's proposed changes to the NDIS legislation have been published (as No. 142) on the Committee's website - see https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Community_Affairs/NDISAmendment2024/Submissions

Or you can download a copy using the links below.

The National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) has strengthened investment in co-designing key reforms to the NDIS, through a funding boost for Disability Representative and Carer Organisations (DRCOs).

The 27 organisations, who will receive up to $10.7 million of funding, collectively represent thousands of people with disability and their families.