Government minister Bill Shorten says reports that crime gangs are defrauding the National Disability Insurance Scheme are “despicable,” The New Daily reports.
News Corp newspapers report that fraudsters are ripping off the scheme by as much as $1.45 billion a year, a program that is already seeing costs ballooning.
“I think there is very few things more despicable in life than crooks taking money which is due to go to disabled people,” Mr Shorten, who is the NDIS minister, told ABC’s Insiders program.
He said organised crime is now moving into NDIS, obtaining people’s personal information and defrauding the system with false invoices, overpaying of bills and ghost payments.
“I absolutely want to see all options on the table to make sure we protect taxpayer money,” he said.
He said the scheme, which was introduced over a decade ago by the then Gillard Labor government, now looks after 580,000 people and employs 250,000 workers in disability.
As the new minister of an incoming government, he wants to restore trust in what has become a bureaucratic nightmare for people on the scheme.
He said it is a maze of red tape and waste and $40 million is being spent on lawyers to fight Australians trying to get onto the scheme.
While it has been suggested that scheme could grow to to $60 billion by 2030, Mr Shorten pointed out one report that was recently commissioned found for every dollar spent it generates $2.25 in economic outcome.
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Bill Shorten plans to target National Disability Insurance Scheme fraudsters (The New Daily)
