Page 2108 - Week 07 - Thursday, 16 May 2013
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The bill amends the definition of visitable place under the Disability Services Act, the Housing Assistance Act and the Mental Health Act. Amendments to the disability services and housing assistance acts clearly identify the places that will be visited. This will ensure the official visitors in these schemes can effectively cover their respective environments and have the capacity to meet the needs of their clients. Without these amendments, the disability services and housing assistance acts official visitor schemes do not have clearly identified visitable places. Clearly defined and identified visitable places will ensure both official visitors and entitled people understand where official visitors will go.
The bill also defines “visitable place” under the Housing Assistance Act as “multiple occupancy supported accommodation for people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, provided by an entity funded by the Territory”. This amendment clarifies that funding is provided by the territory, not under the Housing Assistance Act, and captures multiple occupancy crisis and transitional accommodation services, leaving out longer term family homes. This definition will capture 19 properties and approximately 88 existing clients when the new scheme commences. The amended definition will not include approximately 270 other family homes funded by the territory.
The amendments to the Disability Services Act define “visitable place” as “disability accommodation for respite or long-term residential purposes, wholly or partly funded by the Territory”. This definition of visitable place will capture 150 people with disability in approximately 64 supported accommodation and respite services provided by Disability ACT, 300 people with disability living in approximately 50 other locations and 75 people with disability living in residential aged care.
Discussions with stakeholders have emphasised the need to achieve balance between the policy objectives of the official visitor schemes and operational feasibility. These amendments aim to ensure the scheme is effective and responsive when it commences. I understand that further amendments to broaden this definition may be required after the commencement of the national disability insurance scheme.
The scheme will include residential aged care facilities that accommodate people with disability who are less than 65 years old. The government has considered the views of stakeholders expressing both support and concern for the inclusion of these facilities. The government is aware that the practice of accommodating young people with disabilities in aged care facilities is in the process of being phased out. The younger people with disability in residential aged care initiative is a five-year program agreed on by the Council of Australian Governments. It aims to reduce the number of people with disability aged under 65 who live in residential aged care. The suitability of including these facilities will be considered after the commencement of the NDIS, or DisabilityCare as it is now known, when the government has an opportunity to assess the application and appropriateness of current definitions of visitable place.
The bill amends the Mental Health Act to include “a place in a correctional centre where a detainee may receive treatment or care for mental dysfunction or mental illness” as a visitable place for the period in which treatment or care is given to a
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