A Review of The NDIS Price Guide 2023-2024
With the latest NDIS Price Guide available since July 2023, we reviewed the recent unveiling of the NDIS Price Guide 2023-2024. Most support services have experienced significant pricing increases, although there were a few noteworthy exceptions. Here’s the scoop:
What is the NDIS Price Guide; Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits?
The NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits were formally known as the NDIS Price Guide.
The NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Guide serve as valuable resources for Participants and disability support Providers, offering comprehensive insights into the mechanisms governing pricing controls for NDIS supports and services.
These pricing regulations are established to ensure that Participants receive fair value for the support they acquire. The NDIS Price Guide updates highlight each category accordingly.
Contained within the Support Catalogue are exhaustive listings of available supports that Providers may select when submitting payment requests. Additionally, it furnishes essential details regarding the current and previous price limits applicable to each support item, along with clarifications on the types of claims (e.g., travel, non-face-to-face) that pertain to each price-limited support item.
Price limits, representing the highest allowable prices, delineate the maximum rates registered Providers can bill NDIS Participants for specific support services.
It is important to note that Participants and Providers retain the option to engage in negotiations for lower prices. Compliance with the regulations specified in the NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits is mandatory when delivering support to Participants managed by the NDIA or under plan management. The following information pertains to the changes to the NDIS Pricing Guide and Price Limits.
NDIS Price Guide Changes for 2023 to 2024
The NDIS Price Guide 2023-2024 highlights the Disability Support Worker Cost Model has seen a 9% increase. This encompasses:
- Self and plan management capacity building
- Assistance to access community, social and recreational activities, including group support and establishment fees
- Tenancy support
- Life transition planning
- Assistance with self-care activities and establishment fees
- Supports in employment
- Individual skills development
- Training for carers/parents
- Transition through school and to further education
- Psychosocial Recovery Coaching
- Assistance in SIL – This substantial increase is intended to tackle the significant cost challenges faced by Providers, which encompass adjustments to the SCHADS Award, minimum wage, superannuation guarantee, NDIS registration expenses, and pandemic-related costs. The calculation has been derived from:
- 2% temporary loading, reviewed annually
- 4.6% increase in award minimum wages
- 0.5% increase in superannuation guarantee charge
- 1.7% increase in base prices
“There have been no adjustments in the NDIS Price Guide for therapy, support coordination, and plan management.”
Therapy, support coordination, and plan management Providers may feel disappointed as the NDIA maintains the same pricing for the second consecutive year.
The following extracts highlighted from the Annual Pricing Review indicate a high likelihood that these prices will remain for the foreseeable future. In contrast, Level 1: Support Connection is determined by the DSW Cost Model. However, only 0.5% of Support Coordination hours are funded at this level.
- “It is therefore recommended that the price limits for plan management fees should not be changed.” (Page 152)
- “On balance, the available evidence argues for a decrease in the current price limits for therapy supports. However, there is a significant risk that such a decrease would disrupt the provision of support to Participants in some regions. Continued: It is therefore recommended that no structural change should be made in the pricing arrangements for therapy supports at this time and that the price limits for therapy supports should not be indexed on 1 July 2022.”
- “On balance, it is not considered that an increase in the price limits for Level 2: Coordination of Supports services and Level 3: Specialist Support Coordination services price limit is justified at this time.” (Page 25)
Level 3 high Intensity Supports Ceased
In contrast to previous NDIS Price Guides that incorporated pricing for support work across three complexity levels, the updated Guide now comprises only two: the standard price and a solitary “high-intensity” price. This high-intensity rate is defined as support provided to an individual:
- For individuals who necessitate frequent assistance (at least one instance per shift) to manage challenging behaviours demanding intensive positive behaviour support; and/or
- Individuals in need of support from a disability Support Worker possessing one or more of the high-intensity support skills outlined in the NDIS Commission’s NDIS Practice Standards: Skills Descriptors.
The NDIA has introduced this change to the NDIS new Price Guide with the aim of “streamlining” the arrangements, which often signifies an effort to improve efficiency. In this case, simplification involved consolidating the pricing tiers and merging level 3 into level 2, which can lead to a more straightforward and manageable pricing structure.
Cancellations at Short Notice
In a significant shift to the NDIS Price Guide, the Provider’s benefit has been extended in the definition of “short notice.” Previously, this timeframe was fixed at two days for shorter support arrangements or five days for others. The new definition now identifies such a scenario when an individual:
- Fails to attend a scheduled support appointment within a reasonable timeframe or is not present at the agreed-upon location within a reasonable timeframe when the Provider is en route to deliver the support; or
- Has provided notification for a support appointment with less than seven (7) full days in advance.
- Providers are now permitted to invoice for Centre Capital Costs in case of short-notice cancellations.
Nursing Supports
The prices for nursing support will experience a 2.94% increase, aligning with the Wage Price Index and Consumer Price Index.
Modifications to Provider Travel Regulations
Core support Providers have been granted the ability in the NDIS Price Guide to charge for travels from the Participant’s place of engagement back to their usual work site, given the Participant’s consent and compensation to the worker (or if the worker operates as a sole trader). The maximum billable time per journey is capped at 30 minutes (equivalent to a 60-minute round trip), or 60 minutes for individuals residing in remote or very remote areas. This change brings core supports in line with the existing guidelines for capacity building supports.
Restructured Line Items
The Improved Daily Living support category has undergone a revamp in the NDIS new Price Guide, introducing distinct line items for each allied health profession. Line items for capacity building in plan management have been removed from both the plan management and support coordination support categories. The change presents a more usable solution for Providers whereby only a minor percentage of Providers had the ability to access these line items in the past.
New Bereavement Addendum
The task of claiming support after an individual’s passing has, for a considerable time, presented a daunting challenge during a particularly distressing period. The freshly introduced NDIS Bereavement Addendum furnishes plan managers with a specialised line item for seeking reimbursement for the continued payment processing for a duration of up to 90 days after the individual’s demise. It also offers guidelines for SIL (Supported Independent Living) Providers on claiming support for a period of up to 4 weeks under these circumstances.
For more information relating to the changes: click here
The Temporary Transition Payment (TTP)
The Temporary Transition Payment (TTP) is a pricing adjustment intended to facilitate Providers’ transition into the NDIS system. In the 2023/24 fiscal year, it has been established at a rate 1.5 per cent higher than the standard rate, with plans for its removal in the subsequent year. Line items associated with TTP can be recognised by the inclusion of a ‘T’ at the end of the item code.
Why does the NDIS have Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits Resources?
The NDIA conducts periodic NDIS Price Guide assessments and adjustments to pricing arrangements, aligning with the following:
- Enhance alignment with the requirements of Participants, their families, caregivers, and Providers.
- Sustain affordability while ensuring continued accessibility for future generations of Australians.
Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits Resources
For additional details regarding the modifications to the Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits (formerly known as the NDIS Price Guide) for the year 2023 and beyond, kindly refer to: Click Here
