National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013

The CEO must arrange for an assessment of a participant’s disability support needs to be undertaken as soon as practicable after the CEO commences the preparation of a plan for a participant.

The assessment must be undertaken using the assessment tool, and in accordance with any other requirements (including requirements for the purpose of assessing whether a participant’s disability support needs arise from impairments in relation to which the participant meets the disability requirements or the early intervention requirements), specified in the National Disability Insurance Scheme rules for the purposes of this subsection.

The assessment must:

have regard to any information and reports requested under subsection 36(2) for the purposes of the assessment; and

may have regard to any other information held in the records of the Agency that relates to the person.

A report of the assessment must be prepared and given to the CEO as soon as practicable after the assessment is completed.

The report must:

identify the participant’s disability support needs arising from impairments in relation to which the participant meets the disability requirements or the early intervention requirements; and

include any information, and meet any requirements, specified in the National Disability Insurance Scheme rules for the purposes of this paragraph.

The time at which the disability requirements or the early intervention requirements need to be met for the purposes of this section is the time the assessment is completed.

A participant’s disability support needs arising from an impairment in relation to which the participant meets the disability requirements or the early intervention requirements may be affected by a variety of factors, including environmental factors or the impact of another impairment in relation to which the participant does not meet either of those requirements.

The CEO must give the participant a copy of the report as soon as practicable after the CEO receives the report.

If:

an assessment (the existing assessment) has been undertaken under subsection (1) or paragraph (c) of this subsection in connection with a plan; and

in deciding whether or not to approve a statement of participant supports for the plan, the CEO is satisfied that another assessment (the replacement assessment) of the participant’s need for supports should be undertaken;

the CEO must arrange for the replacement assessment to be undertaken; and

subsections (2) to (6) apply in relation to the replacement assessment in the same way as they applied in relation to the existing assessment; and

the replacement assessment is taken to replace the existing assessment; and

the needs assessment report prepared for the replacement assessment is taken to replace the needs assessment report prepared for the existing assessment.

In reviewing a decision to approve a statement of participant supports, a reviewer or the Administrative Review Tribunal has all the powers of the CEO in making the original decision and must therefore arrange for a replacement assessment to be undertaken if satisfied as mentioned in paragraph (b) (subject to any applicable National Disability Insurance Scheme rules).

The National Disability Insurance Scheme rules may make provision for determining any matter for the purposes of paragraph (7)(b), including by prescribing:

circumstances in which the CEO must or must not decide under that paragraph that another assessment should be undertaken; or

requirements with which the CEO must comply, methods or criteria that the CEO is to apply, or matters that the CEO may, must or must not take into account, in making a decision under that paragraph whether another assessment should be undertaken.

Without limiting subsection 33(3A) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901 or subsection 209(1A) of this Act, National Disability Insurance Scheme rules made for the purposes of this section may make different provision for different classes of participants.

In making National Disability Insurance Scheme rules for the purposes of this section, the Minister must have regard to the objects and principles of this Act (see in particular the principles set out in subsections 4(5), (9A) and (11)) and the financial sustainability of the National Disability Insurance Scheme: see subsection 209(3).