Federal investigators have begun raiding service providers to stop fraudulent claims on the $44 billion National Disability Insurance Scheme as the Albanese government points to new research to claim widespread support for the crackdown.
Australian Federal Police officers joined NDIS officials in a raid on a disability provider in Adelaide on Tuesday, with more raids expected after the formation of a fraud taskforce to monitor false claims.
Days after federal parliament passed laws to control the cost of the scheme, the government pointed to the raids as proof it would meet its budget promise to cap spending growth at 8 per cent a year.
But the changes have sparked criticism from some NDIS recipients and advocacy groups while the Greens have accused Labor of betraying people in need by cutting their services.
Greens leader Adam Bandt and his colleagues opposed the new NDIS controls in parliament last week, but Labor gained support from the Coalition and some crossbenchers for stronger powers to require recipients to keep their spending within agreed plans.
Federal spending on the NDIS, which was $44.3 billion last year, is forecast to rise to $48.8 billion this year and keep growing. The new law is aimed at limiting that growth to avoid greater pressure on the budget.
Government Services Minister Bill Shorten said officials were likely to launch more raids in coming weeks after investigations by a fraud taskforce drawing members from 21 federal agencies.
Shorten said disability providers that delivered services to NDIS recipients could not be “half honest” and defraud the National Disability Insurance Agency that runs the scheme.
“If the NDIA detects fraud, its first priority is ensuring participant safety and welfare – meaning the agency will move participants to alternative providers,” he said.
“The agency will also facilitate the exit of dodgy providers from the scheme. In fact, dozens of these providers are now being progressed towards criminal prosecutions.”
The Albanese government and the Coalition have negotiated to deliver on major reform that will transform the NDIS and aged care.
The government said the taskforce had authorised three raids in recent weeks and more were likely.
Greens senator Jordon Steele-John last week said recipients were “heartbroken” by the new laws.
“Labor has ripped the heart out of the NDIS by removing our right to choice and control,” he said.
“This principle puts into practice our Australian community values that a disabled person has a right to access supports based on their circumstances.”
Shorten has responded by saying the government would spend about $212 billion on the NDIS over the next four years, about $14 billion to $16 billion less than if the legislation had not passed.
The government is confident it will win the public argument after commissioning a study by JWS Research that found strong support for controls on spending.
JWS, headed by pollster John Scales, found 81 per cent of respondents backed the proposal for a mandatory register of all NDIS service providers, a key part of the new plan. The survey was based on responses from 1000 people nationwide.
Opponents of the register argued recipients would prefer to keep receiving services from the people they knew, even if they were not registered. Shorten argued that too many providers were unknown and some turned out to be fictitious.
The survey also found 78 per cent of respondents thought it was very or extremely important to deal with fraud and overcharging in the NDIS, with another 12 per cent saying it was fairly important.
The NDIS grew from about 610,000 to 661,000 recipients over the year to June. Shorten has rejected claims he wants to remove people from the scheme, saying instead that he wants the states and territories to offer more help for people who do not need the NDIS.
The JWS research found 56 per cent of Australians thought the scheme should be scaled back to only help people with severe and permanent mental or physical disabilities. Another 28 per cent said it should not be changed, while the rest were undecided.