SupportAbility updates to align with the new my NDIS provider portal - PACE
The upgrade to SupportAbility v8.2 (on the evening of the 31st of October, 2023) includes updates to align with the new my NDIS provider portal - PACE.
The NDIA has advised that it will take 18 months for all participant plans to move to this new system from the start of the rollout (30th of October, 2023), and participants will transition across when they have a new NDIS Plan or undergo a Plan Reassessment (the new term for Plan Review).
This article steps through some of the key changes associated with the new my NDIS provider portal and the updates that have been made in SupportAbility to align with this, along with how some of the existing functionality may be used to assist with this transition.
Audience: Authorised Customer Representatives, Team Leaders, Finance Team
Summary
The following list summarises the content of this article. Click on the links below to take you to the relevant sections:
- What are some of the key changes associated with the new my NDIS provider portal?
- What updates are available in SupportAbility related to the new my NDIS provider portal?
- 'PACE' setting for new NDIS Client Funding records
- Addition of the new Support Categories
- Mapping of the relevant Support Items to the new Support Categories
- 'PACE' option in the Generate BPR search criteria
- Addition of 'Open' Claim Status in Direct BPRs
- Enhanced ability to upload a subsequent BPRF to update the Claim Status of 'Open' claims
- Various updates to reports and exports
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Using Tags to assist in transitioning to the new my NDIS provider portal
What are some of the key changes associated with the new my NDIS provider portal?
Some of the key changes associated with the new my NDIS provider portal have been outlined below to provide context about the changes made in SupportAbility with the release of v8.2.
This summary is based on information available from the new Improvements NDIS website and from various other documents available from the NDIA, such as the 'my NDIS provider portal step-by-step guide' PDF, available to download from the bottom of the myplace provider portal and resources webpage.
The changes that have been made in SupportAbility to align with this have been outlined in the following section of this article, so please skip ahead as needed.
Changes to Support Types and Support Categories
A fourth Support Type of 'Recurring' has been introduced in addition to Core, Capacity Building and Capital.
Five additional Support Categories have been introduced:
- 16 - Home and Living
- 17 - Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA)
- 18 - Transport Recurring
- This new Support Category has been added for participants who receive transport funding. Participants who are not eligible for transport funding will have a zero-dollar amount against this support category in their plan.
- 19 - Assistive Technology Repairs and Rental
- 20 - Behaviour Support
- 21 - Specialist Disability Young People Living in Residential Aged Care (YPIRAC) - Cross Billing
- This new Support Category has been added so that funding can be allocated in plans for payments for residential aged care subsidies and supplements. Providers are not able to claim against this category.
The NDIA has advised that NDIS plans will be built by Support Category in the new my NDIS provider portal, but that participants will still have stated and flexible supports.
Because budgets will be listed at the Support Category level and as a whole dollar figure rather than as line-by-line costs, the NDIA states that participants will have more flexibility over how they use their total budget.
For more information, please see the Support Catalogue section of the NDIS Improvements website.
Removal of Service bookings and the introduction of 'my providers'
The NDIA has advised that participants with plans in the new my NDIS provider portal will need to record their 'my providers' in their NDIS plan when:
- some or all of their plan has NDIA-managed funding
- they have specialist disability accommodation, home and living supports and/or behaviour supports in their plan
- they have a plan manager. Only the plan manager needs to be recorded as a my provider. All other providers don't need to be recorded.
Providers with existing service bookings, who deliver home and living supports, behaviour supports, and specialist disability accommodation need to ask participants to record them as 'my providers'.
Providers of all other supports with existing service bookings will automatically be recorded as 'my providers' when the participant's plan is developed in our new computer system.
Providers can check the 'My Participants' section of the new my NDIS provider portal. If you can see the participant’s name, this means you are a recorded as ‘my provider’ for the individual.
Once providers are recorded by participants as 'my providers', they will remain recorded for the plan, unless the participant makes a change.
If a participant needs to add a 'my provider' to their NDIS Plan, they can do this:
- At their plan meeting, plan implementation meeting or at a check-in meeting.
- By contacting their my NDIS contact.
- Calling the National Contact Centre on 1800 800 110.
The NDIA has advised that providers should make sure the participant knows their provider number, legal and trading names to record them as 'my providers'.
For more information, please see the My Providers section of the NDIS Improvements website.
Changes to the claiming workflow and expected payment timeframe based on 'my provider' status
The NDIA has advised that the new computer system won't change the way providers make claims and that providers should continue to use the myplace provider portal for all claims.
However, one of the key changes to the claiming workflow for Agency-managed funding is the removal of the single line-item claim function. All claims must be submitted via a Bulk Payment Request (BPR).
The NDIA has advised that claims from 'my providers' for Agency-managed funds in a participant’s plan will automatically be referred for payment. My provider claims are generally paid within 2 to 3 days.
Claims from providers who aren’t recorded as 'my providers' for Agency-managed funds will be validated before they are paid.
If the participant or their nominee does not call after receiving the SMS, the NDIA states that the claim will be processed for payment after 7 days and this process will generally take 10 days before the claim is paid.
Claims from providers for specialist disability accommodation, home and living supports and behaviour supports who aren’t listed as a 'my provider' in the participant's plan will automatically be rejected.
Claims that are not authorised for payment will be marked as ‘rejected’.
For more information, please see the Claims and payments section of the NDIS Improvements website.
What updates are available in SupportAbility related to the new my NDIS provider portal?
The key updates to SupportAbility from the upgrade to v8.2 (October 31st, 2023) related to the new my NDIS provider portal include:
- A 'PACE' setting for new NDIS Client Funding records
- Addition of the new Support Categories (with the exception of Cat 18 as Recurring Transport is for participant budgets in the portal only)
- Mapping of the relevant Support Items to the new Support Categories
- A new 'PACE' option in the Generate Direct Bulk Payment Request (BPR) search criteria
- Addition of 'Open' Claim Status in BPRs
- Ability to upload multiple Bulk Payment Result Files (BPRFs) to update the Claim Status of 'Open' claims
- Various updates to reports and exports
This functionality has been developed based on the public information made available by the NDIA in the lead-up to the start of the rollout (i.e. 30th October 2023). However, we acknowledge that due to the complexities involved in such large-scale change that the NDIS is undergoing, there may be additional considerations that need to be reviewed once participants' NDIS plans start to transition.
With this in mind, we are keen to hear from our providers as they start to navigate their way through this process. This feedback will help to inform any further enhancements that may be required to manage this transition in SupportAbility effectively.
'PACE' setting for new NDIS Client Funding records
When a Client's NDIS Plan is on the new my NDIS provider portal, we recommend creating a brand new NDIS Client Funding record in SupportAbility rather than using the Plan Review feature to create this.
A new 'PACE' setting is available to select when a new NDIS Client Funding record is added:
Selecting 'Yes' here ensures the new Support Categories can be added as needed and Support Items are mapped to the correct Support Category accordingly:
N.B. This setting is also available for providers of Plan Management services when adding NDIS Plan Managed Funding records.
When 'Yes' is selected, the name of the Funding record includes PACE automatically, and this is also listed under 'Funding Type':
When an NDIS Funding record has PACE selected, this ensures the new Support Categories are available to be added as needed:
SupportAbility also maps Support Items to the correct Support Category automatically in PACE Funding records:
For example, Assistance in Supported Independent Living Support Item 01_801_0115_1_1 used to belong to Category 1, but is now part of the new Support Category 16, Home and Living:
Creating a new Funding record when a Client has transitioned to the new my NDIS provider portal is recommended as, the Plan Review feature cannot be used to create an NDIS Direct Client Funding record associated with PACE.
It is only possible to use the Plan Review feature to create the same type of NDIS Direct Client Funding record, e.g. Non-PACE to Non-PACE or PACE to PACE.
Therefore, a new Funding record will be required with the transition; however, the Plan Review feature can be utilised again to set up the next funding record following this.
How to shift Utilisation and Expenditure between Non-PACE and PACE NDIS Direct Client Funding records
When an NDIS Plan has finished early (e.g. when a Plan Reassments has been completed ahead of schedule), and Allocations have been Invoiced or Claimed against the old Non-PACE NDIS Direct Client Funding record, the Plan Review feature cannot be used to transfer the corresponding Utilisation and Expenditure over to the new PACE NDIS Direct Client Funding record.
In such situations, there are different corrections workflows available depending on whether the Activity Sign Off can or cannot be removed:
Activity Sign Off can be removed
In some situations (e.g. 1:1. Activities), it may be possible to remove the Activity Sign off in order to update the Funding Source by:
- Removing the Invoice Items from the corresponding Invoice or Removing the Allocations from the BPR
- Removing the Activity Sign Off
- Deleting the Allocations from the Activity
- Selecting the new PACE NDIS Direct Clent Funding record as the new Funding Source
- Completing the NDIS Support Allocations
- Completing the Activity Sign Off
- Including the Allocations in a new Direct Invoice Batch (Self/Plan Managed) or Bulk Payment Request (Agency Managed)
For more information, see the 'Remove Invoice Items' section of the View/Edit Direct Invoices and the 'Bulk Actions Menu - Remove [Allocations] from BPR' section of the Generating an NDIS Direct Bulk Payment Request (BPR) articles for more information.
Activity Sign Off cannot be removed
When the Activity Sign Off cannot be removed to update the Funding Source, then the following corrections workflow can be completed:
- Either Canceling the Invoice Items (Self/Plan Managed) or Cancelling the Rejected Claims (Agency Managed)
- Creating a new Activity for billing purposes
- Adding the relevant Client and selecting the new PACE NDIS Client Funding record as the Funding Source
- Completing the NDIS Support Allocations
- Completing the Activity Sign Off
- Including the Allocations in a new Direct Invoice Batch (Self/Plan Managed) or Bulk Payment Request (Agency Managed)
For more information, see the 'Cancel Invoice Items' section of the View/Edit Direct Invoices and the BPR Rejected Claim Action - Cancel articles for more information.
Addition of the new Support Categories
The additional Support Categories introduced with the new my NDIS provider portal have been added to SupportAbility, not only in PACE-related funding records as outlined above, but in all other places where relevant, such as the Client Funding Search, Activity Clients Report, Allocations Report and the NDIS Budget Utilisation Report.
For example:
IMPORTANT - Support Category 18 Transport Recurring has not been added to SupportAbility, as there are no Support Items associated with this. This new Support Category has been added for the purpose of budgets in NDIS Plans for participants who receive transport funding periodic payments.
Mapping of the relevant Support Items to the new Support Categories
Support Items have been mapped to the new Support Categories, not only in PACE-related funding records as outlined above but in all other places where relevant when these funding records are in use, such as NDIS Support Allocations and Budget Utilisation.
For example, Assistance in Supported Independent Living Support Item 01_801_0115_1_1 used to belong to Category 1 but is now part of the new Support Category 16, Home and Living:
The new Support Category information is listed in NDIS Support Allocations:
Along with Budget Utilisation:
Noting that if the Client has a Flexible Category Budget for Category 16 instead, all expenditures of 01_801_0115_1_1, for example, will accrue under this Flexible Budget, e.g.:
'PACE' option in the Generate Direct BPR search criteria
A new 'PACE' option has been added to the Generate Direct BPR search criteria, allowing you to filter the Allocations to include in a BPR associated based on whether or not they're associated with PACE:
This new search filter has been added to assist with this transition by providing the ability to keep PACE claims separate if your organisation wishes to, given there may be longer processing times for PACE claims based on ‘my provider’ status.
Splitting out BPRs this way will assist if you have any Clients who have not listed your organisation as a 'my provider' in their NDIS Plan. In this scenario, the BPRs that include claims associated with PACE funding may have an 'Open' Claim Status. This would require a subsequent BPRF to be downloaded from the portal after seven days and then uploaded to the BPR again to update the Claim Status of any Open claims (see below for more information).
As your Clients start to transition to PACE, you may wish to generate separate BPRs to assist you in managing this:
- Including only Allocations that are not associated with PACE funding records by selecting 'Exclude PACE Funding'
- Including only Allocations that are associated with PACE funding records by selecting 'Include PACE Funding only'
Addition of 'Open' Claim Status in Direct BPRs
To align with the changes to the claiming workflow based on 'my provider' status, the Claim Status of 'Open' has been added to BPRs in SupportAbility.
The NDIA has advised that claims for providers who aren’t recorded as 'my providers' for Agency-managed funds will be validated before they are paid. While these claims are being validated, they are in an 'Open' state.
Open Claim Status from the Bulk Payment Results File (BPRF)
When the Bulk Payment Results File (BPRF) is imported, any claims in an Open state are now reflected as such in the BPR in SupportAbility:
The Claim Status of any Open claims with this status as a result of a BPRF can only be updated by a subsequent BPRF, as outlined below.
Manually Open
For providers who are not uploading the Bulk Payment Results File to the BPR to update the Claim Status and are doing so manually, the ability to update the Claim Status to Open manually is now available to align with the above:
Select the relevant Allocations and then select 'Manually Open' (as above) to update the Claim Status to 'Open':
Based on the final outcome, the Claim Status can be updated manually to Accepted or Rejected when this is known.
New filter to view 'Open' claims
A new 'Open' filter has been added to the Totals section of the BPR to narrow the list of Allocations included in the BPR to those with this Claim Status:
Enhanced ability to upload multiple BPRFs to update the Claim Status of 'Open' claims
The NDIA has advised that if the participant or their nominee does not call after receiving the SMS to validate the claim, the claim will be processed for payment after seven days, and this process will generally take ten days before the claim is paid.
The NDIA has also stated that claims that are not authorised for payment will be marked as ‘rejected’ in the portal.
In the scenario where a BPR includes Open claims as a result of a BPRF, the Claim Status can only be updated by a subsequent BPRF being uploaded.
SupportAbility has been updated to ensure the 'Upload BPRF' button is available even after an initial BPRF has been uploaded:
The purpose of this is to allow for subsequent BPRFs to be uploaded to update the Claim Status of any Open claims.
After seven days, there should be an outcome for any Open claims in the portal, i.e. Accepted or Rejected.
Therefore, it is recommended to download a subsequent BPRF from the portal for the relevant BPR and upload this into SupportAbility.
To do so, navigate to the relevant BPR in SupportAbility and select the 'Upload BPRF' button as per the above screenshot:
Either drag and drop or choose the file you wish to upload. Once this has been uploaded, the Claim Status of any Open claims will be updated accordingly:
Will uploading another BPRF override everything?
It is important to note that when uploading a subsequent BPRF, only claims without a Processing Status, Invoice or in a state of Pending Action will be updated.
Uploading another BPRF will not update the Claim Status for the following Allocations in instances where the BPR includes:
- Accepted claims with an associated Invoice
- Accepted claims with a Processing Status of 'Marked for Cancellation' or 'Cancelled'
- Rejected claims with a Processing Status other than 'Pending Action', i.e. 'Marked for Cancellation', 'Cancelled', 'Marked for Retry' or 'Retry'
Uploading another BPRF will also not overwrite any notes that have been added for any Allocations in the BPR.
Various updates to reports and exports
Various updates to reports and exports have been made to align with the above.
Ability to search for Open Allocations in the Allocations Report
Open Allocations are included in the Allocations Report:
The report can be filtered to only show Open Allocations by selecting 'Open' in the BPR Claim Status filter:
Support Items filter
Due to the complexities associated with the mapping required to ensure Support Items are now associated with the correct new Support Categories, selecting 'All Support Items' belonging to a specific Support Category is no longer available in the Support Items filter in various reports:
A search can still be performed to review results for all of the Support Items belonging to a specific Support Category, by selecting each of these Support Items manually.
This update has been applied to the Activity Clients Report, Client Funding Search, NDIS Budget Utilisation Report and the Allocations Report.
Client Funding Search export addition
The Client Funding Search export has been updated to include a new column at the end of the export for PACE. This includes results of Yes or No for NDIS Funding records and is empty for Non-NDIS Funding records.
Direct BPR List
The Direct BPR List has been updated to include the total 'Open' Allocations and their value.
A new 'Total' Allocations column has also been included, the columns have been reordered and a sort feature has been added:
Utilisation status
When Allocations have an 'Open' Claim Status in the Direct BPR, the associated expenditure is grouped under the 'Claiming' Utilisation status:
Using Tags to assist in transitioning to the new my NDIS provider portal
Tags may be a handy tool to assist in tracking which Clients have transitioned to the new my NDIS provider portal as well as which Clients have listed your organisation as a 'my provider' in their NDIS Plan.
For example, the Client Tags of 'PACE' and 'my provider' could be created, and applied once the Client has transitioned to PACE and when they have added your organisation as a 'my provider':
This may come in handy to help keep track of the Clients that have transitioned to PACE, and also those that may not have not registered your organisation as a 'my provider' in their NDIS Plan as yet.
This can be reviewed by generating a Client Search with the 'PACE' Tag, and exporting the list to see who also doesn't have the 'my provider' Tag:
It may also be helpful to create a Client Funding Tag of 'PACE' (and/or 'my provider' or 'non-my provider') to tag the relevant NDIS Funding records with this, as various reports such as the Allocations Report or the NDIS Budget Utilisation Report can be filtered by Client Funding Tags to narrow down the search results, for example, to those associated with PACE Funding records only:
