Disability needs to be at the heart of the election campaign. Hannah Diviney explains why

In a few weeks, every adult in the country has a decision to make. Who do we want leading us? Now obviously, I’m not here to tell you who to vote for. That choice is entirely up to you. What I am here to tell you though, is what’s at stake for me as a young disabled woman during this election.

During his recent Budget speech, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg made just one passing mention of people with disabilities in the Liberal government’s plan for the future, should they get re-elected. In case you missed it (and honestly you’d be forgiven if you did) all he said was that the government will continue to fully fund the NDIS. That’s it. That’s all we got. And that’s not good enough. 

There was no mention of targeted disaster relief funding to help reaccommodate and support those who have been displaced or had their access to services disrupted by recent floods, nor any reference to financial assistance regarding people’s continued health and safety, such as low-cost and easy access provision of Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) or Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) tests or Personal Protection Equipment (PPE).

These were all requests made of the government prior to the budget by several disability organisations, stakeholders and advocates because, despite appearances to the contrary, we are still in the middle of a pandemic.  

Clearly, it seems to me, those requests were ignored – and the lives of people with disabilities devalued – by those in the Morrison Government.

Frydenberg’s only reference to the lives of disabled people in this country was connected to the NDIS, which has deep structural flaws and doesn’t accommodate all disabilities and chronic illnesses. What about addressing our need for accessible housing and the barriers we face to employment? Or the lack of support for those who are medically unable to work but, shockingly, still want quality of life? Or the toxic ties between relationship status and Centrelink support for disabled people?

Most people won’t know that if you’re married or in a defacto relationship, this can affect whether or not you have a right to claim the Disability Support Pension. Discrimination is everywhere, baked into our systems so deeply that people don’t even bat an eyelid.

Back on the topic of the NDIS, I want to be clear: a world with the NDIS is better than a world without it. There’s no disputing that people with disabilities and their families need something of a cushion to protect us from the potentially devastating consequences of not being able to afford having our needs met. However, the NDIS operates with serious structural flaws that need to be addressed.

People are being denied the funds they need for essential equipment, care, modifications or access to services that improve the quality of their lives. Often, this denial is on the basis that these things are ‘not justified’, or even qualify as an ‘everyday living cost’ and so cannot be supported. That’s what the NDIA told me, when I applied for bathroom modifications that are essential to my independence, agency and self-care - all things the NDIA support as my goals. Others are seeing their plans slashed and ignored.

My next step is appearing in front of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal to plead my case. That’s the same legal body that has just announced it plans to ask the government for greater funding in order to deal with the sheer volume of NDIS-related cases. That says it all.

We understand that the government and politics at large in this country don’t really care about disabled people. Your actions are louder than your words. Hell, so is your silence. But we’re not going away. We’re not being quiet. So, start fixing things. Now. And please, people reading this, vote. Make those that govern us care.