NDIS Capital Support: Assistive Technology

Assistive technology is any item or equipment that helps a person living with a disability to live more independently and enjoy the life they want. It could be as simple as a spoon that’s easier to grip that helps you eat independently, or it could be as complex as a custom electric wheelchair. Your NDIS budget can be used to purchase many different types of assistive technology, depending on your goals and your needs. Any technology you purchase with NDIS funds must help you meet your goals, and it must not be eligible for funding from another source. 

The NDIS Assistive Technology category falls under the purpose of Capital Supports, and major assistive technology will be purchased with this budget. The NDIS Capital Support categories provide funding for specific, one-time purchases that will improve a participant’s ability to meet their goals. Capital support items must be approved in advance, and they are generally higher cost items (more than $5,000). However, not all assistive technology needs to be approved and claimed through your Capital Support budget. Some assistive technology items can be purchased directly without approval and reimbursed from the Consumables budget. 

Factors that Affect How Assistive Technology is Funded  

In order for NDIS to fund assistive technology, the technology needs to meet several criteria. It needs to help you achieve the goals you set in your NDIS plan. This means that the assistive technology needs to be useful to help you overcome the disability-specific barriers that stand between you and your goals. In addition, it needs to be safe for you to use, and it needs to meet Australia’s safety standards when applicable. It also needs to be right for you, which means it will accomplish the functions you need it to do, and you’ll be able to use it in all the situations where you need it. In addition, it needs to be ‘value for money’, which means that the cost is reasonable and appropriate for the item. Finally, the equipment must not be eligible for funding by any other organisation such as a hospital or another federal agency. If a particular item of assistive technology meets all of these criteria, then it is likely to be funded by your NDIS budget. 

Although there’s an NDIS budget category specifically for Assistive Technology, or AT, some will be funded from other categories of your budget. Two factors determine which part of your NDIS budget you can use to purchase assistive technology: cost and risk. Technology that is low cost and low risk can be purchased without prior approval using your flexible Consumables budget. Technology that is high cost or high risk must be pre-approved and funded through your Capital Supports budget. 

Low cost assistive technology is usually defined as costing less than $1,500, and items in this price range can be purchased with your Consumables budget as long as they are also low risk. Mid cost technology costs between $1,500 and $5,000, and high cost technology costs over $5,000. Any technology in these price ranges needs to be approved and funded through your Capital Supports budget. 

Risk is another important factor that determines which budget you use for AT. Low-risk technology can be purchased with your Consumables budget, but high-risk technology must be included in your Capital Supports budget. Risk is determined by two things: First, is the item likely to cause injury or harm? Second, do you need advice or training by an allied health professional in order to select, set up, or use the item correctly? If either of these are true, then the item is considered high risk, and it needs to be included in your Capital Supports budget. 

How to Get Approval for an Assistive Technology Purchase 

Although you don’t need specific approval for all assistive technology purchases, you do need to have assistive technology in your NDIS plan before you can use your funding to purchase it. 

To get AT added to your plan, you’ll need to tell your planning manager how the technology will help you meet your goals. Most of the time, it’s recommended that you talk with your GP or an assistive technology advisor about the equipment you want and how it will help you. Even for low-cost technology, it’s helpful to get advice about what technology will work best for you. However, this isn’t required for low-cost, low-risk technology. 

For mid-cost technology, you’ll need to upload a letter of assessment about the technology you need. The letter can be written by your GP or by an assistive technology assessor or advisor, which could be an allied health professional such as a therapist or a nurse. It doesn’t need to be a full assessment of your needs; it can simply be a statement about the technology you’re expected to need. However, you should have an assessment of your needs done before you purchase the equipment. 

For high-cost or high-risk technology, you’ll need to upload a recent assessment about your assistive technology needs and a quote for the cost of the equipment. The assessment must be performed by a qualified practitioner such as an occupational therapist or a physiotherapist. The NDIS provides AT assessment templates on their website. In addition to the assessment, you’ll need to get a quote from a provider for the specific type and model of assistive technology that you need and upload that to your myPlace portal. After you’ve uploaded all the required information, NDIS will make a decision about funding for your assistive technology within 10 days for low- or mid-cost technology or within 30 days for high-cost technology. 

Pricing Recommendations for Assistive Technology 

The 2020-21 NDIS Pricing Arrangement does not include any price limits for assistive technology, although it does include price guides for services related to assistive technology. However, there are documents that provide guidelines regarding what assistive technology is likely to cost. The NDIS provides these guidelines to help you budget for assistive technology you need and to help you request reasonable funding for items you need. 

NDIS Guide for Low-Cost Assistive Technology 

If you are purchasing assistive technology using your Consumables budget, you’ll need to purchase items yourself from a retail store or through your agency plan manager. You will also need to track your budget to make sure you don’t spend too much of your budget on assistive technology. Although there are no price limits in the NDIS Pricing Arrangement for low-cost assistive technology, the NDIA does provide guidelines to help you determine whether a price is reasonable. These prices are simply guidelines – depending on your situation, you may need to spend more or less than these prices for the equipment you need.