NDIS outsider splurge

$180m contractor bill angers clients

THE National Disability Insurance Agency paid consultants and contractors more than $180 million in 16 months, financial statements show.

Records seen by News Corp show the spending on outsourcing expertise between July 2016 and October this year was triple the 2015-16 amount.

A leaked statement shows the Boston Consulting Group received $21 million, the most of any group engaged during the 16-month period.

Australian Healthcare As- sociates was paid $10 million to conduct telephone planning and “information gathering” for National Disability Insurance Scheme clients on their first support plan.

The process was abandoned under the “participant pathway” initiative introduced by Boston Consulting.

The records show contracts above $5 million accounted for $142 million and included: $20.5 MILLION paid to Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu; $18.5 MILLION to the Brotherhood of St Laurence; $15 MILLION to Hays Specialist Recruitment; and, $6 MILLION to LaTrobe Community Health Service.

The NDIS operating cost in 2016-17 was about $5 billion.

Moriac mum Michelle McGarrigle, whose 22-year-old son Liam is on the NDIS, said the money spent on consultants could have been better spent.

“They are denying people transport costs to get to and from appointments but at the same time spending so much money on consultants. How much of this money could have been used to improve the services?” Ms McGarrigle said.

“I think the scheme has fantastic potential but while it gets caught up by people just ticking boxes and not caring it will not progress.”

Ms McGarrigle has spent the past two years in a legal quagmire as she attempts to gain full funding for her son’s transport costs to and from appointments.

The family is waiting for its next hearing date at the Administrative Appeals Tribunal as they seek to have 100 per cent of Liam’s transport cost covered under the NDIS.

An NDIA spokeswoman said: “While the NDIA is growing we need the skills and capability to deliver in a flexible and effective way”.

The NDIS now has 120,000 people with disabilities on its books and must reach 460,000 by the middle of 2020.

A Senate estimates committee heard this year the NDIA employs 2127 staff, 1012 contractors and 2203 local area coordinators.