We, the undersigned, are calling on the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) and the Australian Government to reverse the cuts to plan management funding and to ensure fair and sustainable prices for plan managers.

Plan managers are the most highly regulated, least paid professional group in the NDIS. They ensure that participant funds are spent properly, provide essential administrative support, and are often the only point of consistent, independent advice for participants navigating the NDIS.

Despite these crucial roles, plan managers have not seen a price increase in six years — and now the NDIA has cut the plan management establishment fee altogether. This is happening in the middle of rising wages, inflation, and rapidly increasing business costs. These cuts threaten the viability of independent quality plan managers, and will force many to close their doors.

Plan managers are more than just invoice processors — they help participants understand and use their plans, especially when we don’t have funded support coordination. Removing funding and refusing fair pricing will force plan managers to become “administrative only,” depriving participants of vital support and choice.

The NDIA's latest decision to cut the establishment fee and freeze pricing for plan managers appears to be part of a broader and deeply concerning shift. There is a growing fear across the sector that these changes are designed to push out small, independent providers — the very people who provide personalised, responsive support — in favour of large corporate operators.

Already, major health insurers like nib have begun acquiring plan management businesses across Australia. These acquisitions are paving the way for an NDIS future dominated by a handful of large-scale operators, often offering impersonal, call-centre-style services. Participants have consistently voted with their feet — leaving providers like this in large numbers after disappointing experiences.

If independent plan managers are priced out of the market, participants may be left with only a handful of corporate options. Imagine being told, "Here are your three choices - they all do the same thing and cost the same." That is not real choice or control. That is not the vision of the NDIS.

This shift could result in a dangerous consolidation of power, where once the smaller providers are gone, prices will inevitably rise — and the NDIA may no longer be able to say no. With fewer options left, participants will be at the mercy of the remaining large players.

We urge the government to intervene now — to protect participant choice, preserve the independence of plan management, and ensure the long-term sustainability of the NDIS.

We call on the NDIA and the Government to:

✅ Immediately reinstate the plan management establishment fee and rural/remote loadings.

✅ Increase plan management pricing in line with rising costs and the recent 3.5% wage increase.

✅ Implement an independent, transparent pricing model that reflects the true cost of plan management and the vital role these services play for participants.

The NDIS is built on choice and control. These cuts threaten both.
Support our plan managers so they can continue to support our NDIS community.