More than 100,000 people have joined the National Disability Insurance Scheme as of August, but Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people remain under-represented in the figures says a peak advocacy group.
Only about five per cent of the figure is comprised of Indigenous people with disabilities, despite the fact they are 70 per cent more likely to experience disability than non-Indigenous people.
The Aboriginal Child, Family and Community Care State Secretariat – or ABSEC – is calling for long-term funding for Aboriginal community-controlled health organisations, so they can provide disability services to their local communities.
ABSEC Project Support Officer Brian Edwards says Aboriginal people experience disability differently to other Australians, and as a result are less likely to go to mainstream organisation for support.
(FEATURED IMAGE – Flickr, Binomialphoto)
