Government to review NDIS myplace portal

The government will be establishing an independent review into the implementation of the NDIS myplace portal. This follows weeks of disruption for disability support providers and NDIS participants.

Minister for Social Services, Christian Porter, and Assistant Minister for Social Services and Disability Services, Jane Prentice, will commission an independent review of the system following disruptions to the ICT system in recent weeks.

“The National Disability Insurance Agency has experienced issues including the uploading of provider data to the Portal, which has resulted in delays to payments being issued by the Agency and concerns being expressed by some providers and participants,” Porter said.

“The Agency has now advised that the main issues have been rectified and outstanding payment requests are being prioritised.

“However, while the Government has now been assured the central issues have been resolved, it is now appropriate that a full review is conducted to determine how and why the problems arose so we can be confident that they will not reoccur.”

Prentice said the review was expected to be complete by the end of August.

Dignity for Disability MLC Kelly Vincent told Third Sector that to announce a review on a Friday night at 8 pm is a worrying signal.

“We do reviews when we are not clear what the issue is. But we are clear, the portal hasn’t worked. I would much rather the review happens once the portal is working properly,” said Vincent.

“To announce the review when the portal still isn’t functional is adding insult to injury.”

Prentice said, “It is intended that this review is completed quickly to ensure we do not see these issues occurring in the future and that there continues to be a smooth transition for NDIS participants.”

The National Disability Insurance Agency has welcomed the review of the portal.

“In this period of transition from trial to full scheme rollout, the Agency will continue to build a solid foundation to ensure the National Disability Insurance Scheme delivers for all Australians for generations to come,” said NDIA CEO David Bowen.

Dr Ken Baker, NDS Chief Executive said, “Had the new portal been thoroughly tested with disability support providers prior to its launch on 1 July, most of the problems would presumably have been identified and ironed out.”

“The NDIS holds enormous promise for Australians with disability; but it will only deliver on this great promise if it is implemented well. It would be sensible to test any proposed system or design change with service providers before it is implemented,” he said.