Archive: NDIS Price Guide Update - July 2017

For more information about how Price Guide updates are managed in SupportAbility, please review the following article: 

How are NDIS Price Guides managed in SupportAbility

July 2017 NDIS Price Guide updates

CURRENT STATUS

Following the July 1st, 2017 update, new versions of the NDIS Price Guide CSV’s have been published on the NDIS website, with the most recent being in late October. The most current version will be available in version 4.24.4 of SupportAbility (16th of November, 2017).

To summarise:

• 28 new general support items have been added (including ‘School leaver employment supports (TAS,ACT,NSW,VIC’),10_021_0102_5_3).
• 11 new supports relating to short term accommodation assistance have been added.
• 8 support items have been removed.
• 1 support item that uses the old style (pre-July 2016) reference number has not been added into SupportAbility
• 2 support items have a been given the new Unit of Measure (UOM) of ‘Year’, however, SupportAbility will be treating these the same as the existing  ‘Annual’ supports.
• 1 support item has had the price added (Early Childhood Supports, Capacity building supports for early childhood,15_040_0118_1_3 $178.98).
• 1 has had its price updated.

There continue to be inherent issues with many support items having no price, whilst also being marked as non-quotable. This effectively means these supports cannot be used. SupportAbility has now enabled service providers to use these support items, by automatically overriding the price guide setting of non-quotable and making them quotable. 

To use a support item that does not have a price, it must first be added to the client’s funding plan, along with the price entered into the quote field, prior to it being available for allocation within an activity. Please see the  Customising NDIS Support Items article for more information. 

The Transport support item (02_051_0108_1_1) has been updated and no longer has a price, however, it is set to being quotable with a UOM of ‘Year’. Usually this would mean that in order to be able to use this item, it must first be added to the client’s funding plan, along with a custom price entered. 

SupportAbility is overriding the price guide for this support to allow providers to use and claim this transport support item without the need to add and customise transport support prices on every associated client funding plan. To achieve this, SupportAbility currently overrides the price of this Transport support to be  .78c and the Unit of Measure to ‘kms’. Providers can customise this as required, on a client be client basis, by adding this Transport support item directly to a client’s NDIS funding and entering a customised price to align with your service agreement. 

A full list of all of the changes is available below.

NEW SUPPORTS

Development of Daily Living and Life Skills,Self-Management Capacity Building,01_134_0117_8_1,Self-Management Capacity Building,Hour,N,57.55,Y,Assistance with daily life (includes Supported Independent Living),1

Assistance Animals,assistance dog (including guide dog) ongoing costs,01_509001024_0130_1_1,assistance dog (including guide dog) ongoing costs,Each,N,,N,Assistance with daily life (includes Supported Independent Living),1

Assistance Animals,assistance dog (including guide dog),01_900101023_0130_1_2,assistance dog (including guide dog),Each,Y,,N,Assistance with daily life (includes Supported Independent Living),1

Assist Products for Personal Care and Safety ,non-body-worn washable products for absorbing urine and faeces,03_093045133_0103_1_1,non-body-worn washable products for absorbing urine and faeces,Each,N,,N,Consumables,3

Assist Products for Personal Care and Safety ,Daily adaptive equipment,03_131_0103_1_1,Daily adaptive equipment,Each,N,,N,Consumables,3

Assist Products for Personal Care and Safety ,one or more small devices to assist with dressing and undressing,05_090900046_0103_1_2,one or more small devices to assist with dressing and undressing,Each,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Personal Mobility Equipment ,rollator- mini,05_120606097_0105_1_2,rollator- mini,Each,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Specialised Hearing Services,Hearing services program child under 4 yrs (AH only),05_177_0119_1_2,Hearing services program child under 4 yrs (AH only),Each,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Specialised Hearing Services,Hearing services program child under 4 yrs (AH only) remote,05_178_0119_1_2,Hearing services program child under 4 yrs (AH only) remote,Each,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Specialised Hearing Services,"Annual fee for hearing aid maintenance, batteries, consumables",05_220600213_0119_1_2,"Annual fee for hearing aid maintenance, batteries, consumables",Year,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Specialised Hearing Services,external components for other implantable devices,05_220621218_0119_1_2,external components for other implantable devices,Each,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Specialised Hearing Services,cochlear implant speech processor and coil - non CSO,05_220621443_0119_1_2,cochlear implant speech processor and coil - non CSO,Each,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Specialised Hearing Services,Hearing aid replacement fee (lost or damaged beyond repair),05_220627221_0119_1_2,Hearing aid replacement fee (lost or damaged beyond repair),Each,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Hearing Equipment,remote microphone system,05_222106442_0122_1_2,remote microphone system,Each,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Assist Prod-Pers Care/Safety,"repairs - mobility domain, after-hours (one unit)",05_500433443_0103_1_2,"repairs - mobility domain, after-hours (one unit)",Each,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Custom Prosthetics,orthotic repair,05_500612441_0135_1_2,orthotic repair,Each,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Personal Mobility Equipment,transfer equipment repair,05_501236025_0105_1_2,transfer equipment repair,Each,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Personal Mobility Equipment,"repairs - personal care/safety, after-hours (one unit)",05_501288435_0105_1_2,"repairs - personal care/safety, after-hours (one unit)",Each,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Comms & Info Equipment,programming / customisation of electronic equipment,05_702288440_0124_1_2,programming / customisation of electronic equipment,Hour,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Comms & Info Equipment,communication equipment rental,05_802200437_0124_1_2,communication equipment rental,Each,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Assist Prod-Pers Care/Safety,general satchel/post delivery of equipment to a participant,05_718888439_0103_1_2,general satchel/post delivery of equipment to a participant,Each,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Custom Prosthetics,orthotic or prosthetic componentry rental,05_800612438_0135_1_2,orthotic or prosthetic componentry rental,Each,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Assist Prod-Pers Care/Safety,flexible equipment package (for changing need) - annual amount,05_801288434_0103_1_2,flexible equipment package (for changing need) - annual amount,Each,Y,,N,Assistive technology,5

Assist Prod-Pers Care/Safety,seating/standing frame equipment rental†,05_801809436_0103_1_2,seating/standing frame equipment rental†,Each,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Assistance Animals,assistance dog (including guide dog),05_900101023_0130_1_2,assistance dog (including guide dog),Each,Y,,N,Assistive technology,5

Specialised Disability Accommodation,SDA - Support Coordination,06_433_0131_2_2,SDA - Support Coordination,Hour,Y,,N,Home modifications,6

Assist Access/Maintain Employ,"School leaver employment supports (TAS,ACT,NSW,VIC)",10_021_0102_5_3,"School leaver employment supports (TAS,ACT,NSW,VIC)",Each,N,,N,Finding and keeping a job,10

Daily Tasks/Shared Living      ,Cross billing payments for residential aged care subsidies and supplements,01_049_0115_1_1,Cross billing payments for residential aged care subsidies and supplements,Week,N,,N,Assistance with daily life (includes Supported Independent Living),1

Daily Tasks/Shared Living      ,assistance with daily life tasks provided in residential aged care facility,01_050_0115_1_1,assistance with daily life tasks provided in residential aged care facility,Each,N,,N,Assistance with daily life (includes Supported Independent Living),1

Added in October

Daily Tasks/Shared Living,"short term accommodation and assistance, Saturday, standard intensity",01_051_0115_1_1,"Integrated support for self-care, accommodation, food & activities in a centre or group residence for short periods. Includes all expenses in 24 hour period with no additional loading. May be used for up to 14 consecutive days, then weekly rates apply.",Day,N,593,Y,Assistance with daily life (includes Supported Independent Living),1

Daily Tasks/Shared Living,"short term accommodation and assistance, Sunday, standard intensity",01_052_0115_1_1,"Integrated support for self-care, accommodation, food & activities in a centre or group residence for short periods. Includes all expenses in 24 hour period with no additional loading. May be used for up to 14 consecutive days, then weekly rates apply.",Day,N,703,Y,Assistance with daily life (includes Supported Independent Living),1

Daily Tasks/Shared Living,"short term accommodation and assistance, public holiday, standard intensity",01_053_0115_1_1,"Integrated support for self-care, accommodation, food & activities in a centre or group residence for short periods. Includes all expenses in 24 hour period with no additional loading. May be used for up to 14 consecutive days, then weekly rates apply.",Day,N,812,Y,Assistance with daily life (includes Supported Independent Living),1

Daily Tasks/Shared Living,"short term accommodation and assistance, weekday, high intensity",01_054_0115_1_1,"Integrated support for self-care, accommodation, food & activities in a centre or group residence for short periods. Includes all expenses in 24 hour period with no additional loading. May be used for up to 14 consecutive days, then weekly rates apply.",Day,N,807,Y,Assistance with daily life (includes Supported Independent Living),1

Daily Tasks/Shared Living,"short term accommodation and assistance, Saturday, high intensity",01_055_0115_1_1,"Integrated support for self-care, accommodation, food & activities in a centre or group residence for short periods. Includes all expenses in 24 hour period with no additional loading. May be used for up to 14 consecutive days, then weekly rates apply.",Day,N,986,Y,Assistance with daily life (includes Supported Independent Living),1

Daily Tasks/Shared Living,"short term accommodation and assistance, Sunday, high intensity",01_056_0115_1_1,"Integrated support for self-care, accommodation, food & activities in a centre or group residence for short periods. Includes all expenses in 24 hour period with no additional loading. May be used for up to 14 consecutive days, then weekly rates apply.",Day,N,1205,Y,Assistance with daily life (includes Supported Independent Living),1

Daily Tasks/Shared Living,"short term accommodation and assistance, public holiday, high intensity",01_057_0115_1_1,"Integrated support for self-care, accommodation, food & activities in a centre or group residence for short periods. Includes all expenses in 24 hour period with no additional loading. May be used for up to 14 consecutive days, then weekly rates apply.",Day,N,1425,Y,Assistance with daily life (includes Supported Independent Living),1

Daily Tasks/Shared Living,"short term accommodation and assistance, weekday, 1:1",01_058_0115_1_1,"Integrated support for self-care, accommodation, food & activities in a centre or group residence for short periods. Includes all expenses in 24 hour period with no additional loading. May be used for up to 14 consecutive days, then weekly rates apply.",Day,N,1413,Y,Assistance with daily life (includes Supported Independent Living),1

Daily Tasks/Shared Living,"short term accommodation and assistance, Saturday, 1:1",01_059_0115_1_1,"Integrated support for self-care, accommodation, food & activities in a centre or group residence for short periods. Includes all expenses in 24 hour period with no additional loading. May be used for up to 14 consecutive days, then weekly rates apply.",Day,N,1772,Y,Assistance with daily life (includes Supported Independent Living),1

Daily Tasks/Shared Living,"short term accommodation and assistance, Sunday, 1:1",01_060_0115_1_1,"Integrated support for self-care, accommodation, food & activities in a centre or group residence for short periods. Includes all expenses in 24 hour period with no additional loading. May be used for up to 14 consecutive days, then weekly rates apply.",Day,N,2211,Y,Assistance with daily life (includes Supported Independent Living),1

Daily Tasks/Shared Living,"short term accommodation and assistance, public holiday, 1:1",01_061_0115_1_1,"Integrated support for self-care, accommodation, food & activities in a centre or group residence for short periods. Includes all expenses in 24 hour period with no additional loading. May be used for up to 14 consecutive days, then weekly rates apply.",Day,N,2650,Y,Assistance with daily life (includes Supported Independent Living),1

REMOVED SUPPORTS

Assistance with daily life tasks in a group or shared living arrangement,assistance with daily life tasks provided in residential aged care facility,14 020,assistance with daily life tasks provided in residential aged care facility,Each,N,,N,Improved life choices ,14  (OLD REFERENCE NUMBER)

Vision Equipment                                            ,dog guide,05_123988286_0113_1_2,#N/A,Each,Y,,N,Assistive technology,5

Hearing Equipment                                           ,tinnitus reduction device,05_220627224_0122_1_2,Assistive technology,Each,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Hearing Equipment                                           ,external components for other implantable devices,05_220621218_0122_1_2,Assistive technology,Each,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Hearing Services                                            ,hearing aid replacement fee OHS devices- over 25yrs not DVA,05_220627221_0134_1_2,Assistive technology,Each,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Hearing Services                                            ,hearing aid battery and consumables supply,05_502206314_0134_1_2,12 months battery supply per hearing aid,Each,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Vision Equipment                                            ,dog guide ongoing costs,05_501239287_0113_1_2,,Each,Y,,N,Assistive technology,5

Vehicle modifications                                       ,vehicle related equipment delivery to a participant,05_711212374_0109_1_2,,Each,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

Assist Prod-Pers Care/Safety,hoist repair- mobile or portable,01_501236025_0103_1_1,,Each,N,522.5,Y,Assistance with daily life (includes Supported Independent Living),1

UOM Changed => Year

EXISTING: Assist-Travel/Transport       ,transport,02_051_0108_1_1,transport,Year,Y,,N,Transport (auto payments),2

NEW: Specialised Hearing Services,"Annual fee for hearing aid maintenance, batteries, consumables",05_220600213_0119_1_2,"Annual fee for hearing aid maintenance, batteries, consumables",Year,N,,N,Assistive technology,5

PRICE CHANGED

Added in October

Daily Tasks/Shared Living,"short term accommodation and assistance, weekday, standard intensity",01_045_0115_1_1,"Integrated support for self-care, accommodation, food & activities in a centre or group residence for short periods. Includes all expenses in 24 hour period with no additional loading. May be used for up to 14 consecutive days, then weekly rates apply.",Day,N,503,Y,Assistance with daily life (includes Supported Independent Living),1

PRICE ADDED (PREVIOUSLY SET TO ZERO)

Added in October

Early Childhood Supports,Capacity building supports for early childhood,15_040_0118_1_3,Capacity building supports for early childhood,Hour,N,178.98,Y,Improved daily living skills,15

CHANGED TO NON-QUOTABLE

Daily Tasks/Shared Living      ,assistance with daily life tasks provided in residential aged care facility,01_050_0115_1_1,assistance with daily life tasks provided in residential aged care facility,Each,N,,N,Assistance with daily life (includes Supported Independent Living),1

PROGRESS

28th of June, 2017

The NDIA have released the official 2017 Price Guide in PDF and DOCX formats today: 

https://www.ndis.gov.au/providers/pricing-and-payment.html

CSV Version of the Price Guide

SupportAbility requires the CSV versions of the  new Price Guide in order to update this information into the SupportAbility product.  We are expecting the NDIA to release the CSV Price Guide data in the next few days. 

Clarification on ability for Service Providers to use the 2017-18 prices

On page 11 of the  new Price Guide under the section entitled Claiming for 2017-18 NDIS supports and services using this Guide the following clause can be found:

'Prices that have already been explicitly set in service agreements between providers and participants are not affected by changes to maximum prices, even if the service agreement is for the delivery of supports after 1 July 2017.'

In essence, this clause states that service providers are not permitted to claim the 2017-18 NDIS Price Guide rates if they have a Service Agreement in place with the client that references the July 2016-17 NDIS Price Guide rates.  

We have similarly been informed that any existing service bookings in the MyPlace Provider Portal created at the support item (not category) level will, be locked at the pricing applicable at the time of their creation. Trying to claim the new higher maximum rates for these service bookings made at the older, lower price maximums are expected to fail.

Historically, in previous NDIS Price Guide releases, providers have been allowed to claim at the new price maximums from the start date of the new price guide, regardless of the prices itemised in existing service agreements. It is for this reason that SupportAbility has been designed to automatically use the new rates whenever a new price guide becomes available.

Some providers may have service agreements in place containing clauses stating that any prices listed in the service agreement are subject to review/change upon the release of a new price guide.  It is yet to be confirmed if the Agency will respect such clauses and allow these providers to charge at the new prices from July 2017.  Obviously, such clauses do not rectify the issue of service bookings entered in the MyPlace Provider Portal at the old price guide rates as previously described.

We are currently reviewing potential solutions to address this, to ensure that the 2016-17 NDIS Price Guide rates can be used for client's who have service agreements in place referencing support items at the 2016-17 rates. Obviously service agreements are specific to each service provider and SupportAbility has no understanding or visibility into this, therefore we are looking into a way to register this at the client funding level. We will keep you updated as this solution progresses. 

29th of June, 2017

CSV Version of the Price Guide

The CSV version of the 2017-18 NDIS Price Guide has been published today. We are now reviewing this for inclusion into SupportAbility. 

Solution for 2016-17 NDIS Price Guide rates for valid Service Bookings referencing these rates

We are continuing to determine a solution to  ensure that the 2016-17 NDIS Price Guide rates can be used for client's who have service agreements in place referencing support items at the 2016-17 rates and will continue to keep you updated as this solution progresses.

30 of June, 2017

CSV Version of the Price Guide

The CSV version of the  2017-18 NDIS Price Guide was published yesterday. The engineering team are now working on updating this in SupportAbility. 

The following items are no longer available in the 2017-18 NDIS Price Guide: 

• Spec Support Employment assistance in specialised supported employment Level 1 DMI,10_012_0133_5_3 - Provision of Level One ongoing on- the- job support to enable a participant to maintain/retain supported employment. Pricing guidance is weekly.,Week,N,84.92,Y,Finding and keeping a job,10
• Spec Support Employment assistance in specialised supported employment Level 2 DMI,10_013_0133_5_3 - Provision of Level Two ongoing on- the- job support to enable a participant to maintain/retain supported employment. Pricing guidance is weekly.,Week,N,143.54,Y,Finding and keeping a job,10
• Spec Support Employment assistance in specialised supported employment Level 3 DMI,10_014_0133_5_3 - Provision of Level Three ongoing on- the- job support to enable a participant to maintain/retain supported employment. Pricing guidance is weekly.,Week,N,215.54,Y,Finding and keeping a job,10
• Spec Support Employment assistance in specialised supported employment Level 4 DMI,10_015_0133_5_3 - Provision of Level Four ongoing on- the- job support to enable a participant to maintain/retain supported employment. Pricing guidance is weekly.,Week,N,285.92,Y,Finding and keeping a job,10

The following item is the only new addition to the 2017-18 NDIS Price Guide: 

• Continence support,Continence aids: assessment recommendation and training delivered by a nurse,15_051_0114_1_3,,Hour,N,95.77,Y,Improved daily living skills,15

NDIS Support Items missing from the CSV, therefore from SupportAbility

Based on the number of requests we have received for 'missing' Support Items to be added into SupportAbility to date, it appears that there are many items that are available for claiming in the MyPlace Provider Portal that are not included in the CSV version of the NDIS Price Guide. 

Where a Support Item is missing in SupportAbility, it is missing from the CSV version of the NDIS Price Guide, therefore we recommend that your organisation informs the Agency that the line item is required to be added to the CSV to assist your organisation managing NDIS funding. 

The only alternative is to find the closest matching Support Item to claim against. As recommended verbatim from the NDIS Price Guide, 'Providers should claim payments against a support line item that most closely aligns to the service they have delivered.'  p. 7, 2017-18 VIC NSW QLD TAS NDIS Price Guide & 2017-18 ACT NT SA WA NDIS Price Guide.

Please review the  NDIS Support Item additions article for more information regarding this. 

Solution for 2016-17 NDIS Price Guide rates for valid Service Bookings referencing these rates

With previously updated NDIS Price Guides, providers have been allowed to immediately utilise the new prices. With the 2017-18 NDIS Price Guide release, the NDIA have changed the rules in correlation to pricing, as this must align with current service agreements and service bookings. 

We are working on a solution to ensure that the 2016-17 NDIS Price Guide rates can be used for client's who have service agreements and/or service bookings in place referencing support items at the 2016-17 rates. 

By default, any NDIS funding record valid within the period of the 2016-17 NDIS Price Guide will be set to not use the 2017-18 NDIS Price Guide. However, providers will have the facility to choose if and when the 2017-18 NDIS Price Guide can be used in the client's NDIS funding record. 

When can we expect the 2017-18 NDIS Price Guide to be available in SupportAbility? 

Within the next five business days. 

The CSV version of the Price Guide was only published on the afternoon of the 29th of June, and the NDIA had stated previously that the Price Guide was due for release in May/early June. Our engineering team are currently dedicated to working on getting this into SupportAbility and performing all of the required testing of this as soon as possible. We will continue to keep you updated here as this progresses. 

Can we generate invoices and payment requests in SupportAbility until then?

By default, SupportAbility is still using the 2016-17 NDIS Price Guide, so if your organisation wishes to make payment requests using this pricing, continue to allocate NDIS Support Items in activities as usual and once the activities are Signed Off, they can be invoiced from here. 

What happens if our organisation wishes to invoice and generate payment requests using the 2017-2018 prices before the new Price Guide is available?

Once the 2017-18 Price Guide is upgraded in SupportAbility, it will be available for use. We will be releasing the ability to specify when you wish to start using the latest Price Guide at a client funding level as part of this upgrade. 

If your organisation has any client's you wish to generate invoices at the new rates for, we recommend you continue to allocate NDIS Support Items in activities as usual, however, do not sign off theses activities yet. You will need to wait until the before-mentioned upgrade and then update any client you wish to claim at the new rates for at the client funding level before performing the activity sign off. 

Once specified that the 2017-18 NDIS Price Guide is required to be used at the client funding level, this will be applied to any activities for the client that have not yet been signed off. They can then be signed off and invoiced following this. 

4th of July 2017 

The engineering team are continuing to work on adding the 2017-18 NDIS Price Guide into SupportAbility and the solution to specify when, if at all, you wish to use the new rates for client's with NDIS funding records for the period of the 2016-17 NDIS Price Guide. 

We are expecting to be able to provide screen shots and more information about how this will work very soon.  

6th of July 2017

Non-Quotable NDIS Support Items in the new Price Guide with $0.00 price

Whilst working on adding the 2017-18 NDIS Price Guide into SupportAbility, we have identified the following issues in addition to those already outlined: 

• There are 3 support items set to Non-Quotable in the 2016-17 Price Guide and the 2017-18 Price Guide, however, the price has been set to $0.00 in the 2017-18 Price Guide
• There are also 186 support items that were set to Quotable in 2016-17 Price Guide and are now Non-Quotable in 2017-18 Price Guide, yet the price set to $0.00

There are 189 support items in total that are Non-Quotable yet have a $0.00 Price in the 2017-18 Price Guide, this means that these items are unable to be claimed if this issue is not resolved. For a full list of these support items, please review the following article Non-Quotable NDIS Support Items in the 2017-18 NDIS Price Guide with $0.00 price.

We have advised the NDIA and NDS of these issues and have collaborated with SupportAbility subscribers that strong contacts at the Agency to report also these issues. Primarily we need to know if the Agency plan to rectify these issues, and if so, when they expect a revised CSV version of the 2017-18 Price Guide to be released. We are now awaiting feedback from the Agency on this. 

Progress update

The engineering team are continuing to work on the final stages of integrating the new 2017-18 NDIS Price Guide into SupportAbility. Included in this upgrade will be a new NDIS Price Guide Transition feature for Client Funding Plans created at the point of the 2016-17 NDIS Price Guide being valid. Using this feature, providers can specify when, if at all, the new Price Guide rates are to be used for client activities, in cases where the client's funding commenced in the period covered by the 2016-17 Price Guide and extends past the 1st of July 2017. This has been added to address the new clause to this effect added by the NDIA in the 2017-18 NDIS Price Guide. 

Testing is also being completed at this time, along with documentation about the NDIS Price Guide transition update, to support it's upcoming release. 

We are now in the final stages of development and testing, however, in light of the issues recently discovered; 189 Non-Quotable NDIS Support Items in the new Price Guide with $0.00 price (as mentioned above), and the many unknowns about the Supported Employment DMI level support items no longer available in the CSV (i.e. will these support items be available to claim at all in the MyPlace Provider Portal, or were these accidentally omitted, etc.), we have decided to halt the release of the 2017-18 NDIS Price Guide update and the NDIS Price Guide Transition feature, until an update is provided by the NDIA to clarify these issues. 

7th of July 2017

Updates to the CSV versions of the Price Guides

The CSV available on the NDIS website is now being regularly monitored and compared to the initial file available and we can confirm it has been revised. 

Effective today, the following updates have been identified: 

• 15_051_0114_1_3 to Community Nursing Care

• 10_012_0133_5_3
• 10_013_0133_5_3
• 10_014_0133_5_3
• 10_015_0133_5_3

• 06_433_0131_2_2

Whilst the Supported Employment DMI level support items have been restored to the CSV version of the Price Guides, we are yet to receive a response regarding the Non-Quotable NDIS Support Items issue identified in the new Price Guide with a $0.00 price yesterday. 

11th of July 2017

NDS Advice on the new NDIS Price Guide

The National Disability Service (NDS) have released an article entitled ' Advice on the new NDIS Price Guide' based on their conversations and negotiations with the NDIA in response to the new Price Guide release.  The key takeaways are as follows:

• Some Providers may have Service Agreements in place containing clauses stating that any prices listed in the service agreement are subject to review/change upon the release of a new price guide. The NDS have confirmed confirmed that the NDIA will respect such clauses and allow these Providers to charge at the new prices from July 2017. 
• The NDS announced that the MyPlace Provider Portal will accept payment requests for supports at 2017-18 price guide price limits against service bookings entered with the older 2016-17 price guide price limits. We have worked with providers to test this, and can confirm that payments requests made at the new limits will be accepted by the portal, even if the service bookings are at the original pricing.

This essentially means that the great majority of service providers can start utilising the new price limits as long as their service agreements either:

1. do not itemise specific supports with references to old 2016-17 prices OR 
2. contain clauses that allow them to increase prices when the NDIA release a new price guide

Progress update

The engineering team have completed the integration the new 2017-18 NDIS Price Guide into SupportAbility. Included in this upgrade will be a new  NDIS Price Guide Transition feature for Client Funding Plans created at the point of the 2016-17 NDIS Price Guide being valid. Using this feature, providers can specify when, if at all, the new Price Guide rates are to be used for client activities, in cases where the client's funding commenced in the period covered by the 2016-17 Price Guide and extends past the 1st of July 2017. This has been added to provide price guide transition controls in cases where service agreements are in place that prohibit the provider from using the newer 2017-18 price limits for specific clients. 

By default, SupportAbility will be configured to utilise the new 2017-18 price limits for all activities commencing on or after July 1st, 2017 that have not yet been signed off.

There is also the issue of the broken 186 support items in the price guide that have been recently been changed to be non-quotable whilst having a zero ($0) price limit.  SupportAbility will automatically treat these support items as quotable until the NDIA resolve the issue in a price guide amendment.  

There are also 7 supports in the new NDIS 2017-18 Price Guide that have had their price limit reduced to $0.  We can only assume that this is a mistake, and so we will be setting prices for these 7 support items to their original 2016-17 pricing until informed otherwise by the agency:

21st of August 2017

Revised NDIS Price Guide Published

The NDIA published a new  version of the 2017-18 NDIS Price Guide CSV files recently with no communications, notifications, or any indication on the CSV files themselves to indicate a version number or the fact that they have been altered.

The new CSV contains approximately 30 new supports.  However, there are multiple issues with the data in the file. We are currently seeking clarification from the NDIA on how these issues should be resolved before we can add the new supports to SupportAbility.

18th of October 2017

The NDIA has still not rectified the issues with the changes made to the CSV versions of the Price Guide in August. To summarise, the current issues are:

• A new support has been added, using an older style reference number (14 020).  These older style reference numbers were all replaced in July 2016 and the MyPlace Provider portal no longer accepts them.
• The new School Leavers Employment Support (10_021_0102_5_3) is marked as non-quotable but also has no price, therefore it is invalid.
• A new Unit of Measure (UoM), 'Year' has been introduced. All previous Price Guides used the 'Annual' UoM.  The Agency have published no information to clarify if these new supports using the Year UoM are to be treated the same as the Annual UoM supports.
• There are still 186 support items in the Price Guide that have been been changed to be non-quotable whilst having a zero ($0) price limit.
• There are still 3 supports in the Price Guide that have had their price limit reduced to $0.  

16th of November, 2017

Following the July 1st, 2017 update, new versions of the NDIS Price Guide CSV’s have been published on the NDIS website, with the most recent being in late October. The most current version will be available in version 4.24.4 of SupportAbility (16th of November, 2017). Please see above 'Current Status' for details. 

Archives:

• NDIS Price Guide Update - July 2016

SUMMARY

SupportAbility currently contains the third version of the July 2017 CSV versions of the Price Guides. The NDIA released v3 in late October.

SupportAbility relies on the official CSV Price Guide data published by the NDIA. The NDIA are responsible for determining and publishing the pricing and rules for supports delivered under the NDIS and themselves state that ' a comprehensive listing of support ‘line items’ will be kept up to date on the NDIS website'.  For these reasons, SupportAbility only uses price guide data officially published on the NDIS website.

Our Engineering team are regularly reviewing the published CSV Price Guide data on a weekly basis to check if a new version has been published, as historically the NDIA have not communicated when a revised version has been published.