“If Jodie wasn’t here, I wouldn’t be alive”: NDIS cuts leave participants and providers on the brink

The National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) was designed to empower Australians with disability to live independently and with dignity. But recent pricing cuts introduced on July 1 are having devastating consequences—particularly for participants with complex needs.

Angie, a Brisbane woman living with cerebral palsy, is one of many caught at the intersection of clinical vulnerability and systemic failure.

Her story, shared by the Australian Physiotherapy Association (APA), highlights the growing pressure on both participants and providers working within the system.

A life saved — and now hanging in the balance

For over 15 years, Angie relied on the dedicated support of her physiotherapist and support worker, Jodie — a long-time APA member. Their close, professional partnership helped Angie maintain mobility and live independently in her own home. But two years ago, everything changed.

Jodie received a frantic call: Angie had collapsed at home, her walker on top of her. She was rushed to the hospital with pneumonia, influenza A, and signs of sepsis. She spent over a month in intensive care.

When discharged, her condition had significantly deteriorated. Medical professionals unanimously recommended 24-hour care. But despite the critical need, Angie’s NDIS funding had run out. With no family to advocate for her, and no funds left in her plan, Angie faced an alarming reality — losing all autonomy over her life.

The cost of care, and the cost of cuts

The latest NDIS pricing changes have had an immediate effect on Angie’s day-to-day well-being. Once able to manage basic activities of daily living, Angie can no longer get out of bed, use the toilet, or prepare meals on her own. She is now wheelchair-bound and entirely reliant on Jodie’s support to remain at home.

Without that support, the alternatives are bleak: a hospital bed or a nursing home — outcomes both Angie and Jodie fear would be fatal.

Yet despite the urgent need, Jodie has found herself working unpaid. Like thousands of other allied health professionals across Australia, she is navigating a system that increasingly undervalues skilled, long-term care. When she approached the NDIS to request fair remuneration for her continued support, she was told she should have walked away when the funding dried up.

But for Jodie, walking away would have meant watching Angie deteriorate — or die.

A national crisis, one story at a time

Jodie’s story reflects a more profound crisis unfolding across the country. The July 1 pricing review by the NDIS has reduced payments for therapy assistants and increased administrative demands, disproportionately impacting providers supporting participants with complex, high-care needs.

For small providers and sole traders, the reduced flexibility and lack of transitional funding mean making impossible choices: stop care and let vulnerable participants suffer, or continue working without pay and hope support eventually arrives.

The human cost is growing. Participants are being left behind. Providers are burning out or going broke. And in the middle of it all are stories like Angie and Jodie’s—testimonies of commitment, resilience, and heartbreak.

“This story needs to be heard”

“We’re not just a checkbox or a budget line,” Jodie says. “We’re people. And the people we support matter.”

The APA is calling attention to the growing number of physiotherapists being forced to choose between ethical care and financial sustainability. Angie and Jodie’s case, among many others, reveals the urgent need for funding reform that reflects the realities of complex, high-needs disability support.

As policymakers continue to adjust the NDIS to meet budget targets, the human consequences of these changes must not be overlooked. Behind every cut is a person whose life depends on care — and a professional doing everything they can to provide it.