NDIS For Level 2 Autism
An estimated 164,000 Australians are living with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). That’s about 1 in every 150 people in Australia being affected by Autism. Autism is a developmental disorder that starts from birth. There is no cure for Autism as it is a lifelong disorder.
Many people affected with Autism learn to be functional and independent individuals in their everyday lives. However, the effects of Autism are experienced in a spectrum with a portion of those diagnosed with the disorder requiring substantial support, which is also classified as Level 2 Autism. That is when the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) comes in to provide much-needed support.
The NDIS
The National Disability Insurance Scheme or the NDIS is a scheme developed by the Australian Government back in 2013 to provide funding for Australians living with a permanent and significant disability. This funding will go to the NDIS participant’s much-needed support, resources, or services that will help them gain independence, learn skills, alleviate the challenges of their disabilities, and live everyday life as normally as possible.
Under the management of the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA), the NDIS has helped hundreds of thousands of Australians since the beginning of its rollout in 2017. The NDIS is estimated to reach half a million people with disabilities in Australia to provide them with funding for much-needed support to help with their disabilities.
Unlike a standard insurance scheme, the NDIS does not have a one-size-fits-all solution for their participants. Rather, it allows its participants to customise or have significant input in developing their NDIS Plan.
An NDIS Plan is an outline of the short and long-term goals that participants have with the NDIS. The NDIS Participants lay out their goals and support they need to help with their disabilities in their NDIS.
No NDIS Plan is the same. Each NDIS Participant will have a unique plan that fits their situation as no one has the same needs and personal goals, especially if they are living with a disorder like Autism.
To help make the participant’s plans successful, the NDIS has curated professionals and organisations across Australia that are registered with the NDIS to certify that they can provide quality support and care to NDIS Participants. They are called registered NDIS Providers and are crucial in helping NDIS Participants meet their specific needs and reach their personal goals.
NDIS Participants have the option to pick and choose which registered NDIS Provider they can include in their plan to help them with their disabilities.
The customisation of individual NDIS Plans is especially helpful for those with Autism in Australia. Not everyone with Autism is eligible to become an NDIS Participant. However, those with Level 2 severity of Autism and above are automatically qualified to get support from the NDIS.
Autistic Spectrum Disorder
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a lifelong developmental disorder that is present in individuals since birth. The effects of Autism are experienced in a spectrum so symptoms of the disorder can greatly vary from one individual with ASD to another.
In general, a person with autism may have deficits in verbal communication, displays repetitive or limited movements, is obsessed with keeping things in order, has sensory overstimulation, experiences distress with changes in their environment or routines, and faces challenges in social situations.
ASD is an umbrella term for what were once separate conditions in previous editions of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV). Some examples of these conditions include autistic disorder, Asperger’s syndrome, Rett’s Disorder, and Childhood Disintegrative Disorder.
With the changes made in the practise of diagnosing and classification of ASD in the DSM-V, mental health professionals can provide their services and expertise to people with Autism with more nuance.
The addition of a spectrum in Autism perfectly shows that not every person with Autism will experience the same severity of symptoms or face the same exact challenges. Some may function normally in their everyday lives with their Autism being barely noticeable and some may not be able to function properly without significant support.
A Closer Look on Level 2 Autism Spectrum Disorder
There are three official levels of severity for people with ASD from the DSM-V. This is used to describe the level of severity in two areas of functioning for people with ASD: social skills or communication and restrictive or repetitive behaviours. These levels also indicate how much support a person with autism needs to function in daily life.
The NDIS is committed to helping people with a permanent and significant disability that impacts their daily lives. People with Level 2 autism means that they require significant support so they can function through life as normally as possible. Because of this, the NDIS automatically qualified those with Level 2 ASD to receive much-needed support if they sign up to be an NDIS Participant.
People with Level 2 Autism may find it difficult to navigate in social situations or to communicate and require extensive support to function in a social setting. They also display deficits in nonverbal communication like lack of eye contact, flat tone of voice, or lack of facial expressions.
They typically display limited and repetitive behaviours. They are also highly dependent on their routines and habits that can cause high levels of distress when changed or disturbed.
How the NDIS can help people with Level 2 Autism
Australians diagnosed with Level 2 autism can receive support from the NDIS to help them navigate through every day as normally as possible. The NDIS can provide support for different aspects of their life that their ASD may have impacted. These supports can include but are not limited to:
Speech Pathology
Occupational Therapy
Behavioural Therapy and Support
Personal Care Support to help with daily functions
School Aids
Nutrition
The Level 1 and 3 Severity of Autism
Level 1
People with level 1 ASD is also classified as having mild autism. This means that they may struggle with conversation and making friends. They also find it difficult to face changes in routines. They may require some support to be able to function normally in everyday life.
The NDIS requires additional assessment and documentation for people with Level 1 ASD to prove the disorder’s significant impact across different aspects of their life for them to be eligible to become an NDIS Participant.
Level 3
People with level 3 ASD are described as having the most severe form of the disorder. They require very substantial support to function in everyday life. People with Level 3 ASD experience the same symptoms as those with Level 1 and Level 2 ASD but to a more extreme degree. They will have severely limited communication skills and rarely engage socially. They also typically display limited and repetitive behaviours.
Just like with a diagnosis of Level 2 ASD, people with Level 3 ASD will automatically be qualified to be an NDIS Participant to help with the challenges they face because of their disorder.
Read more about What Disability Does NDIS Cover?