Information and links about COVID-19 for people with disability and close others
Are you eligible to get a COVID-19 vaccine?
You can use the Health Department’s COVID-19 vaccine eligibility checker to find out when and where you can receive a COVID-19 vaccine.
All NDIS participants aged 12 and over, their carers and support workers are eligible to receive a COVID-19 vaccination.
Australia Wide COVID-19 Information
Information about COVID-19 for people with disability
Information about COVID-19 for disability service providers
Need more information and support?
People with disability, families, carers and support workers can contact the Disability Gateway for information about COVID-19. The Disability Gateway is free, private and fact-checked.
If you are worried about COVID-19, contact the Disability Gateway:
Phone (free call): 1800 643 787
National Relay Service: 133 677
State COVID-19 Information
All states are regularly making announcements about COVID safe practices and rules. Click on the buttons below to give you the latest information and advice in your state.
<strong><strong>Getting Vaccinated</strong></strong> and Booster shots
All Australians aged 12 and over are eligible to have the free COVID-19 vaccine.
Getting a COVID-19 vaccine protects you from getting very sick or even dying from COVID-19. Getting vaccinated also helps protect people around you by slowing the spread of the virus. For more information on vaccines click on the link or buttons below:
Phone Services
National Relay Service: 133 677
National COVID-19 helpline: 1800 020 080Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS National): Call 131 450 and ask for the National COVID-19 helpline.
Booster Shots
You might have heard about booster shots. Sometimes people with disability can be severely immunocompromised. This means you might have a weakened immune system making it harder for you to fight infections and other diseases. You may need a third dose of COVID-19 vaccine to really be protected from COVID-19.
If you are severely immunocompromised you should talk to your GP or specialist about if you need a booster shot.
Fact sheet about the third dose
<strong><strong>Personal protective equipment</strong> (PPE)</strong>
For information about NDIS funding for PPE, go to this web page. Support worker agencies need to give their staff PPE. This means masks, sanitiser and gloves. They need to give these to you and to your support workers especially if either of you have any cold or flu symptoms. Talk to your agency if this is not happening.
If you employ your support workers yourself, you might need to give them PPE. If you self-manage, and need close personal care, you might be able to use your NDIS consumables budget to buy PPE.
If you don’t have enough funding in your budget for PPE:
- Call the NDIS on 1800 800 110
- Press 5.
- Tell them you need funding for PPE for your support workers
- Ask for a light touch plan review
You can watch this video to learn about plan reviews.
Talk to your support coordinator or your planner/local area coordinator if you have any questions about how you can use your funding.
National Medical Stockpile: The Australian Government has the National Medical Stockpile (NMS). This means there is PPE stored to give to NDIS providers and self-managing participants who need it the most. You can submit a request here. The Department of Health will decide who can have this PPE.
More information:
Australian Government Disability Information Line: 1800 643 787
NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission: COVID-19 information for people with a disability
Australian Government Department of Health: Advice for people with a disability during COVID-19
Department of Social Services: COVID-19 accessible resources
Department of Health: Management and Operational Plan for People with Disability
NDIS: COVID-19 Health and Safety Q & A
Training for disability support workers on PPE: COVID-19 PPE for disability support workers
World Health Organisation: COVID-19 advice for the public
Choice Magazine: Cleaning in the time of coronavirus
Choice Magazine: How to clean your smartphone to protect against COVID-19
<strong><strong>NDIS and COVID-19 Support</strong></strong>
Information about COVID-19 changes all the time and quickly. The NDIA keeps up with these changes. Look at the NDIS webpage for the latest information about COVID-19 and the NDIS.
NDIS Webpage:
Team Disability Services Consulting (DSC):
<strong><strong> I have COVID or I have been exposed. I can’t stay in my home.</strong></strong>
Every state has a quarantine program or emergency accommodation program.
Call your state’s COVID hotline to get quick help.
New South Wales Government – 137 788
Northern Territory Government – 1800 020 080
Australian Capital Territory Government – 02 6207 7244
Queensland Government – 134 268
Victorian Government – 1800 675 398
Tasmanian Government – 1800 671 738
South Australian Government – 1800 253 787
Western Australian Government – 1800 595 206
Sometimes the quarantine programs or emergency accomodation programs are full or not accessible enough for people with disability.
The Housing Hub is working on an idea to solve this problem. We are talking to housing providers to ask them if they want to list their properties as emergency housing for you.
Keep looking at the Housing Hub, Summer Foundation social media and here for news about this.
<strong><strong>Talking to support workers, friends and family about COVID-19</strong></strong>
It is important to be honest with your support workers, family and friends about any worries you have about COVID-19, your safety and vaccines. It is OK to have these conversations with the people that support you. Sometimes these conversations can be hard.
Read these articles to give you ideas about talking to people about COVID-19:
Summer Foundation Blog: Moving Forward with COVID-19
Click here to read an article about having hard COVID vaccinations conversations.
Listen to our Reasonable and Necessary podcast series: Living with COVID discussing ‘How people with disabilities can stay safe as Australia learns to live with COVID-19’ with Dr George Taleporos.
<strong>My state is opening up, how can I best prepare myself?</strong>
NSW and Victoria are ‘opening up’ and relaxing COVID-19 restrictions. It is important to understand what this means for you. You can plan and prepare for how you can manage situations.
Click on these links for tools and information to help you plan for your support needs.
Collaborating 4 Inclusion – COVID-19 Planning Resource for People with Disability (Australia)
Hireup – COVID-19 State Requirements and key information
The Growing Space: Coming Out of Lockdown: Resources for Support Coordinators
<strong><strong>Tools to help you if you need to go to hospital</strong></strong>
Making sure you have a ‘hospital passport’ or support person with you when going to hospital is very important. You, a family member or trusted support can fill in the ‘hospital passport’ form and always have it with you if you need to go to hospital. Tools like these are vital in a time with COVID-19 because you might not be able to take a support person in with you to hospital.
These forms give information to frontline health workers to make sure they understand your needs. It includes:
- Personal details
- Details of key support people
- The best form of communication for you
- Information on your usual presentation and behaviours (i.e. when not sick)
- Information to support you if your are anxious or distressed
- Health information
- Medicine information
See links below for more information on tools to prepare for going to hospital. You can choose the one that suits you the best.
Nobody left Behind – COVID Hospital Toolkit
Department of Health – COVID-19 Companion
Admission to Discharge (A2D) Together – The A2D Together Folder
Queensland Health – Julian’s Key Health Passport
<strong><strong><strong>Rapid Antigen Testing</strong></strong></strong>
Rapid Antigen Testing are tests you or a person supporting you can do at home to check if you may have COVID-19. Tests will give you a result in 15 to 30 minutes. These tests are faster but less accurate than a standard test at a COVID-19 testing site.
Rapid antigen tests can only tell you if you are likely to have COVID-19.
People in Victoria, New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland, Tasmania and Australian Capital Territory are allowed to buy rapid antigen tests for home use.
South Australia and Western Australia do not allow the use of rapid antigen tests to detect or diagnose COVID-19.
This type of testing is new. At the moment the NDIS is not supporting NDIS participants to use this type of testing.
The tests are sold in pharmacies, supermarkets, including Coles and Woolworths, and other retailers both in-store and online.
For more information look at: COVID-19 self-tests that are approved in Australia
We will update this page when we have more information.
<strong><strong><strong><strong>How to keep staying safe</strong></strong></strong></strong>
Handwashing
Regular hand washing is a good way to stop the spread of COVID-19. Washing your hands with soap and water is better than using hand sanitiser. Hand sanitiser is good when you are out or you do not have access to soap and water.
You should also ask your support workers to wash their hands often, especially when they arrive to see you and before they leave.
Cleaning
Keeping table tops and areas in your house clean helps stop the spread of COVID-19. Use disinfectant to clean surfaces including door knobs, light switches, taps and phones.
Click on the links below for more ways to keep clean and safe.
<strong><strong><strong><strong><strong>Easy read information & useful web pages</strong></strong></strong></strong></strong>
The Growing Space:
- COVID-19 symptoms, preparation, keeping safe, support worker safety, restrictions in Australia, and what to do if you get sick
- Tips for keeping wheelchairs and other equipment and surfaces clean
- Top 31 ways to use support workers while avoiding COVID-19
- Warning stop sign for your front door – alerting people to not enter if they have virus symptoms
Quality and Safeguard Commission:
Nobody left behind:
People with Disability Australia:
Moving forward with COVID-19
