Budget fact sheets 2005 - new services for clients on Sickness and Invalid’s Benefits
The Government is investing nearly $27.7 million over the next four years in the development of employment services for people on Sickness and Invalid’s Benefits to support people who want to work.
Many people on these benefits (SB/IB) are able to work but need increased support so they can hold down jobs while managing their health or disability.
The new service for SB/IB funding will see improved employment co-ordination, work assessments, increased funding for specialist equipment and other support for disabled people in work. It will also increase payments for medical assessment of eligibility for Invalid’s Benefit to designated doctors.
Employment co-ordination
An Employment Co-ordinator role will be established in each of the 11 Work and Income regions. Their principal task will be to develop and deliver an appropriate work brokerage service for clients with ill health or disability. This will involve putting in place processes to retain people's employment connections when they first come on to benefit. The co-ordinators will also develop close working relationships between Work and Income and organisations that assist these clients into work by delivering community employment initiatives and contracted services such as supported employment.
Preparing for work assessment
The Preparing for Work vocational assessment identifies what a client is able to do and what supports might benefit the client in employment. This funding will enable 2,500 clients to be assessed each year.
Individual employment support (disability)
This initiative provides increased availability of Support Funds to assist more people with disabilities and their new employer to meet the specific needs a person may have in order to work, such as specialist equipment and workplace modifications. This funding will enable an additional 1,000 clients to be helped each year with an ongoing funding commitment in out-years for 1,500 clients.
Increased payments to designated doctors
This funding will allow fees to designated doctors to be increased. These fees were last reviewed in 1995. The fees to designated doctors and psychologists will increase from $67.50 to $119.25 per visit and specialist fees will increase from $103.84 to $168.75 (GST incl.) per visit.
These initiatives expand the new service for Sickness and Invalid’s Benefits and will be fully implemented over the next two to three years.
