Improvements to the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) Myplace particpant portal went live on July 23. The new enhancements to the online systems allows service bookings to be amended or cancelled without waiting for the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) to process requests.
The changes apply to all service bookings created since July 9 with backdated coverage to come through from subsequent upgrades. Further portal enhancements will be rolled out progressively over the next 12 months.
The online tool used by participants to find a provider has also been upgraded with maps to display provider locations, an improved search function to show provider opening hours and if new referrals are being accepted, increased geographic search capabilities, and a new design with guided help text to improve accessibility.
Participants and providers now have the option to:
- Edit or delete new service bookings
- Increase and decrease the duration, price and quantity of each service booking
- Immediately cancel a service booking
- Insert a rejection reason or explanatory note while rejecting a revision to a service booking
- Make it easier to find providers, their location and hours of operation information
- Make it easier to find the right service in a participant’s preferred location
- Provide a mapping tool to give a more precise search response and show location
- Allow participants to search for providers beyond the current 50km limit
- Improve usability and accessibility through the roll out of a new visual design and guided help text.
NDIA CEO Robert De Luca said the changes were the latest improvements to come out of the agency’s Pathways Review that started in April 2017.
“We’ve listened to more than 1,000 participants, family members, service providers and advocacy groups over the past 15 months to find out where the NDIS is not meeting their expectations, so we can address these issues,” he said.