Carers cautious over $60m deal

ABIGAIL Elliott doesn't want people to feel sorry for her. But as the mother of a three-year-old boy with Down syndrome, "damn it - people do need to know that, yes, it is harder having a child with an intellectual disability".

By InvestSMART · 4 Aug 2011

By InvestSMART ·
4 Aug 2011

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ABIGAIL Elliott doesn't want people to feel sorry for her. But as the mother of a three-year-old boy with Down syndrome, "damn it people do need to know that, yes, it is harder having a child with an intellectual disability".

Ms Elliott was among a crowd of carers who gave cautious support to the launch yesterday of the National Carer Strategy, a $60 million parcel of adjustments and reforms that aims to repair some of the many funding anomalies and shortfalls in the federal government's support for the more than 2.6 million people responsible for the care of someone with a disability.

Like many at the gathering at Carers Victoria's Footscray headquarters, she welcomed the recognition of carers' own needs emphasised throughout the document, but also made it clear she's hoping for more when the government responds to the Productivity Commission's report into the National Disability Insurance Scheme.

"It's the beginning of a process," Ms Elliott said. "It's a really good start."

The National Carer Strategy offered $42.6 million to extend the carers allowance to parents of children with type 1 diabetes between the ages of 10 and 16. The $52 a week will compensate parents for life on 24-hour alert, says Mairi-anne Macartney, whose 13-year-old daughter Tess needs insulin shots eight times a day.

Families whose young children (under seven) have been disabled by accident or sudden illness will continue to get the Carer Adjustment Payment, which was due to lapse this financial year.

Sibling carers and others under retirement age will now be able to claim the bereavement payment, an interim payment offered after the person they have cared for has died.

While many welcomed changes that allow working carers to claim the annual $600 carer's supplement, several carers stressed the need for greater supports to allow carers to get back to work.

"We don't want all this waffly stuff," said Brenda Mclachlan, mother of two autistic teenage boys. Previously a research scientist, she's looking for legislation to create flexible employment for carers. "Women who choose to be a carer or have it put on us, we have to lose our careers. We need a concrete, sustainable system that is going to ensure that we are able to secure work in our own professions."

While Senator Jenny Macklin saw the National Carer Strategy as "part of a long-term 10-year strategy" to fix a system she described as "not working", she insisted that "no decision had been made" on the National Disability Insurance Scheme, including Victoria's potential role in piloting some of the programs.

The Productivity Commission's report into the insurance scheme was given to the federal government on Monday.

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Frequently Asked Questions about this Article…

What is the National Carer Strategy and what does the $60 million package cover?

The National Carer Strategy is a federal initiative launched as a $60 million parcel of adjustments and reforms designed to repair funding anomalies and shortfalls in support for people who care for someone with a disability. The package targets a range of measures aimed at improving financial and practical supports for more than 2.6 million carers.

Who will benefit from the National Carer Strategy funding?

The measures are aimed at carers across Australia — including parents of children with type 1 diabetes, families with very young children disabled by accident or sudden illness, sibling carers, carers under retirement age, and working carers who may access certain supplements. The strategy emphasises recognition of carers’ own needs as well as financial adjustments.

How is the carers allowance being changed for parents of children with type 1 diabetes?

The strategy includes $42.6 million to extend the carers allowance to parents of children with type 1 diabetes between ages 10 and 16. That extension includes a payment of about $52 a week intended to compensate parents who are effectively on 24‑hour alert.

What is the Carer Adjustment Payment and who will continue to receive it?

The Carer Adjustment Payment is a one‑off payment for families whose young children (under seven) have been disabled by accident or sudden illness. Under the strategy, these families will continue to receive the payment after it was due to lapse this financial year.

What changes were made to bereavement payments under the strategy?

The strategy expands eligibility so that sibling carers and other carers under retirement age will now be able to claim the bereavement payment — an interim payment provided after the person they cared for has died.

What does the annual $600 carer’s supplement change mean for working carers?

The strategy allows many working carers to claim the annual $600 carer’s supplement. However, several carers at the launch stressed that while the payment is welcome, greater supports are still needed to help carers return to paid work, including calls for more flexible employment options and legislation to protect carers’ careers.

How did carers and advocates react to the National Carer Strategy?

Carers expressed cautious support. Many welcomed the recognition of carers’ needs and the practical payments, but several speakers — including parents and long‑term carers — said they want more concrete, sustainable measures (for example, flexible employment laws) and fuller action when the government responds to the Productivity Commission’s report on the National Disability Insurance Scheme.

What is the current status of decisions about the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS)?

Senator Jenny Macklin described the National Carer Strategy as part of a long‑term 10‑year effort to fix a system she called 'not working,' but she said that 'no decision had been made' on the NDIS, including any role for Victoria in piloting programs. The Productivity Commission’s report into the insurance scheme was delivered to the federal government on Monday.