PWDA DISABILITY advocates have described the passage of sweeping changes to the National Disability Insurance Scheme as a “devastating day”, warning hundreds of thousands of Australians could lose access to vital supports.
People with Disability Australia (PWDA) condemned Parliament’s passage of the National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026, arguing the reforms could leave people with disability with fewer supports and reduced choice and control.
PWDA Acting CEO Megan Spindler-Smith said the disability community was frightened and angry about what the changes could mean.
“We are devastated. We are frightened. We are angry, our community is grieving,” Ms Spindler-Smith said.
“People with disability in their thousands provided evidence of what these changes would mean for our lives. We warned about the harm, the injuries, the lost opportunities and lives. Parliament chose to proceed anyway.”
The legislation has been the subject of fierce opposition from disability organisations, advocates and NDIS participants, who raised concerns during the parliamentary process about tighter access to the scheme and potential reductions in supports.
PWDA acknowledged amendments secured during debate had addressed some concerns and would provide important protections for some participants.
However, Ms Spindler-Smith said the fundamental concerns remained.
“Hundreds of thousands of people with disability still face being denied access to the NDIS or losing supports they need,” she said.
A major concern for advocates is what will be available to people who are no longer eligible for the NDIS or cannot gain access under the new arrangements.
The Federal Government has pointed to work with states and territories to develop supports outside the NDIS, but PWDA argues those services are not yet in place and there remains significant uncertainty about what they will provide.
“We need to know what will actually be there, when they’ll be up and running and how they will replace the 94 million hours of paid care that are being taken away,” Ms Spindler-Smith said.
The NDIS was established to provide eligible Australians with permanent and significant disability with greater choice and control over the supports they receive, while improving opportunities for independence and participation in work and community life.
Ms Spindler-Smith said the passage of the legislation would not end the campaign against changes advocates believe could undermine those principles.
Much of the practical impact will depend on rules, regulations and implementation decisions still to come, with PWDA calling for people with disability to have a leading role in that process.
“This Bill may have passed, but the accountability does not end here,” Ms Spindler-Smith said.
“We will document the harm. We will document the supports lost, the jobs lost and the lives made smaller. We will put it on the public record. We will fight for the harm to be reversed and for the NDIS to return to what it was always meant to be.”
