PACE for Support Coordinators

The NDIA are rolling out a new billing system called PACE.

There is plenty of information available for providers regarding PACE, as it primarily impacts their billing processes. 

But what about participants?

Here are the top 5 things you as a participant need to know about PACE:
1. What do the changes with PACE involve?

The roll out of PACE will change how providers bill for the services you receive using your NDIS funding. This change involves your providers accessing the new PACE payment system.

The new PACE system, as well as the new My NDIS Provider Portal, will eventually replace the current online system and MyPlace Portal.

These new systems are rolling out from 30th October 2023 and is expected to be completed by Feb 2024. 

2. Will this change my NDIS plan?

Amount of Funding

There should be no changes to the amount of funding available to you in your plan, or any future plans in the PACE system.

How it Looks

Current plans will remain unchanged in their format. If you have a rollover before Feb 2024, it will also remain unchanged. 

New plans issued will use the new PACE format. The new format has the same type of information, its just much easier to read.

Categories of Funding

PACE plans offfer more plan flexibility for participants: Funding in NDIS plans will be built at the support category level. There will be no line items built into plans.

For example, your plan won't say you have funding for "Occupational Therapy", it would say you have funding for "Improved Daily Life" so you will have more flexibility over how you use your total budget. 

Participants will still have stated and flexible supports. 

Service Bookings

PACE NDIS plans won’t have service bookings. This means more choice and control for participants, as their funding is not pre-allocated to future supports. You are able to cahnge your mind more easily.

Support Types

PACE is moving from 3 to 4 support types.

Support types now include:

1. Core
2. Capacity building
3. Capital
4. Recurring 
    

Support Categories

We will move from 15 to 21 support categories.

We have split some of the existing categories to make the new categories easier to understand.

Budgets are displayed at the support category level. 

NOTE: the 6 new support categories are all stated supports (this means you can only use them for very specific supports).

They include:

1. Home and Living (Core) - includes SIL (Supported Independent Living)
2. Behaviour Support (Capacity Building)
3. Assistive Technology Repairs and Rental (Capital)
4. Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) (Capital)
5. Recurring Transport (Recurring)
6. Specialist Disability Young People Living in Residential Aged Care (YPIRAC) - (Cross Billing Core)

View NDIS PACE categories
 

Using Funds

All participants with: 

• SDA (specialist disability accommodation),
• home and living supports (includes SIL) and
• behaviour supports

need to have their providers recorded as MyProviders (at a support category level in their NDIS plan), or their claims will automatically be rejected.

Transport Recurring is a new support category for participants who receive transport funding. It will appear in all plans and have a zero-dollar amount if you don't receive funding for transport.

Young People in Residential Aged Care (YPIRAC) - Cross Billing has been added so that funding can be allocated in plans for payments for residential aged care subsidies and supplements. 

See a sample NDIS PACE Plan

View a Sample PACE Plan

3. Will I need to go for a plan review?

Existing plans will continue as normal and PACE will not impact your NDIS plan dates.

When you have a new plan, you will be enrolled into the new PACE system with your new PACE plan.

4. Does anything change with my providers?

You can continue to work with your existing providers. 

Agency-Managed participants will need to add their chosen providers as a “participant-endorsed provider” (myProvider) so they can access the funding for the services provided.  Note that providers will need to nominate specific staff from their organisation to have a role as the ‘person with consent’. Only those staff can act on behalf of a participant. 

Plan managed participants don't need to record providers for their supports if they don't want to.

You can now give providers consent to view different parts of your plan (instead of the whole plan). You can choose when to share your budget information, your goals and funded supports so that they can better support you.

It is more important than ever to have a written service agreement set up with all of the providers you engage with so that it is clear to everyone involved how much funding will be used.

See our resource on Service Agreements

5. How does PACE benefit me as a Participant?

With category-level funding, your NDIS plan will give you more flexibility on how you spend your funding. PACE will thus empower you to have more control over your plan and the services you receive.

You can provide consent for your chosen providers to view different parts of your NDIS details in PACE, such as just your contact details and plan dates or your detailed NDIS goals. This streamlines processes for both you and your NDIS providers. 

Providers can deliver more outcomes-based services, which is something the NDIS feels is very important to make sure participants get the most from their funding.

For additional information, please access the following links:
NDIS - Information for NDIS providers about PACE and the new my NDIS provider portal

NDIS Improvements website