The Morrison Government has been caught tampering with expert evidence in a desperate bid to steamroll through its unpopular Independent Assessments in the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).

National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) boss Martin Hoffman has already been forced to apologise to one academic for using their quotes in a misleading fashion, both he and NDIS Minister Reynolds must now apologise to the latest experts who have been used.

Academics from the University of New South Wales and disability group Autism CRC have written to the Morrison Government to have their statements removed. The experts have said since providing their comments in September 2020, considerable new detail has been released on the ‘Independent Assessment Framework’, and their quotes are no longer relevant.

NDIS Minister Linda Reynolds is using every trick in the book to get Independent Assessments to be bulldozed through and reduce access to the Scheme. 

The latest scandal follows on from a series of shocking tactics including:

• Rewriting give the NDIS legislation to steamroll in a plan to reassess the 430,000+ Australians already on the Scheme.
• Inserting an entire chapter in the so-called ‘independent” Tune Review. 
• Using sham pilots to push through the Independent Assessments instead of shelving them, as unilaterally advised. 

The Liberals have used expert opinion on the tools used to assess the capacity of NDIS participants and slotted it into a paper to spruik its so-called Independent Assessments, without consulting the academics. 

In September 2020, the Liberals asked academics for expert advice for a paper to assess the functional capacity framework it used to determine eligibility for the NDIS.

In the same month, the Government changed the title of the paper to ‘Independent Assessment Framework’ and introduced extensive ugly details of its so-called Independent Assessments, that it was desperate to shove through.

Minister Reynolds must stop the independent assessments and apologise immediately.

FRIDAY, 14 MAY 2021