Plan Management Service Agreement

• Parties

This Service Agreement is for (“the Participant”), a participant in the National Disability Insurance Scheme, and is made between:

The Participant’s Name or Nominee completed on the form and 9D Homecare Pty Ltd (using the business name 9D Care ABN: 42 622 476 055).

• The NDIS and this Service Agreement

This Service Agreement is made for providing supports under the participant’s NDIS plan.

The parties agree that this Service Agreement is made in the context of the NDIS, which is a scheme that aims to:

1. support the independence and social and economic participation of people with disability; and
2. enable people with a disability to exercise choice and control in the pursuit of their goals and the planning and delivery of their supports.

• Duration of agreement

This Service Agreement will continue for the duration of the period that the participant remains a participant of the National Disability Insurance Scheme, unless the agreement is terminated in compliance to clause 10 of this agreement.

• Schedule of Supports

9D Care agrees to provide the Participant Plan Management – Financial Administration as long as funding is available from the NDIS for this service.

• Pricing

9D Care will charge the pricing as set by the NDIA in the NDIS Pricing Guide at the time the charges are applied.  This includes the Plan Management And Financial Capacity Building – Set Up Costs (Support Item Number 14_033_0127_8_3) and the Plan Management – Financial Administration – Monthly Fee (Support Item Number 14_034_0127_8_3) and any other relevant support item required to provide the service.

The NDIS Pricing Guide can be obtained from the NDIS website.

Changes to prices are updated to respond to market trends and changes in costs and are generally identified through an Annual Price Review. The Annual Price Review is undertaken by the NDIA in the lead up to each new financial year, with any new prices outlined in an updated NDIS Price Guide, effective 1 July each year.  Funding within NDIS Plans are amended to reflect changes to NDIA set prices.  Please note the NDIA may change prices outside of the Annual Review process.

Additional expenses (i.e. things that are not included as part of a Participant’s NDIS supports) are the responsibility of the participant or participant’s representative and are not included in the cost of the supports and do not form part of this agreement.

• 9D Care Responsibilities

9D Care agrees to:

1. review the provision of supports at least annually with the participant or the participant’s representative;
2. once agreed, provide supports that meet the participant’s needs at the participant’s preferred times;

III. communicate openly and honestly in a timely manner;

1. treat the participant with courtesy and respect;
2. consult the participant on decisions about how supports are provided;
3. give the participant information about managing any complaints or disagreements;

VII. listen to the participant’s feedback and resolve problems quickly;

VIII. give the participant reasonable notification if 9D Care needs to change a scheduled appointment to provide supports;

1. give the participant the required notice if 9D Care needs to end this Service Agreement, clause 10 of this agreement;
2. protect the participant’s privacy and confidential information;
3. provide supports in a manner consistent with relevant laws, including the National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013 (NDIS Act) and rules, and the Australian Consumer Law;

XII. keep accurate records on the supports provided to the participant; and

XIII. issue regular invoices and statements of the supports delivered to the participant as per the NDIA’s Terms of Business for Registered Providers.

• Responsibilities of the Participant and Participant’s Representative

The Participant and Participant’s Representatives agree to:

1. inform 9D Care about how they wish the supports to be delivered to meet the participant’s needs;
2. treat 9D Care employees and contractors with courtesy and respect;

• communicate with 9D Care if the participant has any concerns about the supports being provided;

1. comply with the relevant notice periods set out in this agreement to vary, change, add or cancel a support/service or appointment;
2. give 9D Care the required notice if the participant needs to end this Service Agreement, as per clause 10 of this agreement;
3. let 9D Care know immediately if the participant’s NDIS plan is suspended or replaced by a new NDIS plan, or the participant stops being a participant in the NDIS.

• Agreement to take part in external Audit & Certification process.

The Participant opts in to the process of being interviewed by Auditors that are externally appointed by 9D Care as part of the ongoing Certification requirements of the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission.  Prior to each audit 9D Care participants are sent an opt out letter that can be signed and returned to 9D Care if the participant wishes to opt out of that specific audit.

• Changes to this Service agreement

The parties agree that any changes to this Service Agreement will be in writing, signed and dated by the parties.

• Ending this Service Agreement

Should either party wish to end this Service Agreement they must give 4 weeks written notice.

If either party seriously breaches this Service Agreement the requirement of notice will be waived.

• Variation of timings of provision, Changes, Addition or Cancellation of Supports

Where a Participant or Participant’s Representative Permanently Varies the timing of provision, Changes, Adds or Cancels specific supports a new Schedule of Supports will be required to be signed and dated by the Participant or their Representative before it can be acted upon.

Permanent Variations, Changes and Cancellations require 4 weeks written notice.  9D Care will facilitate the request within 4 weeks where possible, respecting the rights of 9D Care employees and contractors.

Where a Participant or Participant’s Representative wants to temporarily vary the timings of provision of a Support/Service a reasonable notification period must be provided in writing to 9D Care to enable 9D Care to facilitate the variation with the allocated worker, or replacement worker.

• Short Notice Cancellations (or no-shows)

9D Care reserves the right to part/full recovery of the fee associated with the activity for short notice cancellations.  9D Care will only charge for a short notice cancellation (or no-show) if they have not found alternative billable work for the relevant worker and are required to pay the worker for the time that would have been spent providing the support.  In these circumstances, in compliance to the NDIS Price Guide conditions outlined below, 9D Care will recover the portion of the fee as outlined in the NDIS Price Guide currently 100% of the associated fee.  The NDIS Price Guide is subject to change and this clause is subject to those relevant changes to the NDIS Price Guide.

A cancellation is a short notice cancellation if the participant:

• does not show up for a scheduled support within a reasonable time, or is not present at the agreed place and within a reasonable time when the provider is travelling to deliver the support; or
• has given less than two (2) clear business days’ notice for a support/service that meets both of the following conditions:
  1. to the support is less than 8 hours continuous duration; AND
  2. the agreed total price for the support is less than $1000;
• or has given less than five (5) clear business days’ notice for any other support.

• Feedback, Compliments and Complaints

All Feedback, Compliments and Complaints will be used by 9D Care to deliver their commitment to Continuous Quality Improvement and will be handled in compliance to 9D Care’s Feedback, Compliments, and Complaints Policy and Procedures.

9D Care’s Feedback, Compliments and Complaints Policy will be provided to Participant and/or the Participant’s Representative as part of the Welcome Pack of information that will be emailed to the email address provided by the Participant or the Participant’s Representative.  The Policy is also available on 9D Care’s website.  Hard copy versions, or disability accessible versions, of the welcome pack can be provided upon request.

If the Participant or Participant’s Representative wants to give 9D Care feedback, make a compliment, or is not happy with the provision of supports/services and wants to make a complaint, the participant can notify 9D Care through their Brevity application login.  Alternatively, 9D Care can be notified through the form on the 9D Care website, or by contacting 9D Care on 1800 717 678 via telephone or through the National Relay Service.

If the Participant and/or the Participant’s Representative are not satisfied with the outcome of a complaint made to 9D Care, or does not want to complain directly to 9D Care, the Participant or the Participant’s Representative can contact the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission by calling 1800 035 544, completing the Complaint contact form @ www.ndiscommission.gov.au, through the National Relay Service www.relayservice.gov.au then 1800 035 544, or through the Translating and Interpreting Service on 131 450.

• Goods and Services Tax (GST)

For the purposes of GST legislation, the Parties confirm that:

1. a supply of supports under this Service Agreement is a supply of one or more of the reasonable and necessary supports specified in the statement included, under subsection 33(2) of the NDIS Act, in the Participant’s NDIS plan currently in effect under section 37 of the NDIS Act;
2. the participant’s NDIS plan is expected to remain in effect during the period the supports are provided; and

III. the Participant or the Participant’s Representative will immediately notify the provider if the Participant’s NDIS Plan is replaced by a new plan or the participant stops being a Participant in the NDIS.

• Payments

The NDIA manage the funding for Plan Management supports provided under this Service Agreement.  9D Care will claim payment for those supports from the NDIA.

Where the Participant has nominated a Plan Management Provider to manage the funding for NDIS supports provided under this Service Agreement, after providing those supports, 9D Care will send an invoice for those supports to the Plan Management Provider whom will pay the invoice within 7 days.

• Communications to the Participant/Plan Nominee

The Parties agree that communications to the Participant or the Participant’s Representative relating to provision of these Supports will be sent to the email address of the Participant, Nominee or Representative advised on the form.