Effective assessment is essential to ensure that people with blindness or low vision who seek support through the National Disability Insurance Scheme get the kinds of equipment, training and other assistance they need.
A new, independent assessment process is being introduced to the NDIA to try and make the scheme more accessible, and to make assessment processes and decisions more consistent and transparent.
Vision 2020 Australia believe that these are important aims, but that the changes currently proposed to assessment processes may exacerbate some of the existing challenges that people who are blind or have low vision encounter with existing NDIA assessment processes.
A position statement has been developed to outline what the Vision 2020 Australia believes an improved assessment approach needs to deliver.
Vision 2020 Australia is keen to continue working with government to achieve an assessment scheme that is fair, transparent and able to accommodate the diversity of needs of participants.