新西兰政府正在通过社区咨询和政策改革，改善残障支持体系，重点提升家庭照护者支持、服务灵活性与实际可用性，并计划在未来推出新的照护者支持方案。
♿ 改善残障人士与照护者服务
残障人士及其照护者将迎来更多支持服务改进。政府将启动一项新的社区咨询，并开始研究如何为家庭照护者提供更好的支持。
残障事务部长 Louise Upston 表示：
🗣️ “服务必须贴近日常生活需求”
她说：
“残障人士及其照护者和家庭，应该获得真正能在日常生活中发挥作用的服务。”
📅 社区咨询时间
从：
- 6月8日到7月31日
Disability Support Services 将向残障群体征求意见，了解如何进一步改进服务。
🎯 咨询重点内容
此次征询将聚焦以下方面：
- 更灵活的支持方式
- 更好的生活规划支持（包括照护者需求）
- 更关注实际成果的服务体系
- 更清晰的信息与建议服务
- 更容易反馈问题的机制
- 改善“暂托照护”（respite care）服务
👨👩👧 家庭照护者支持将升级
政府表示，将根据反馈制定新的照护者支持方案。
可能内容包括：
- 💰 照护者津贴（carer payment）
- 🧘 更好的暂托照护服务
- 🛠️ 其他实际支持措施
⚙️ 现行问题与改革方向
目前制度允许：
- 使用灵活资金雇佣家庭成员作为照护者
但政府认为存在问题：
- 程序复杂
- 管理困难
- 不完全适用于家庭照护模式
因此政府正在考虑：
👉 用更简单、更适合家庭照护的支持方式替代现有安排
🧭 政策目标
Louise Upston 表示改革目标是：
- 提供更稳定的支持体系
- 简化残障服务系统
- 让家庭和残障人士更容易获得帮助
💰 资金投入
政府在最近预算中已投入：
👉 21亿纽币额外资金
用于支持整个残障服务体系。
📌 法案与咨询区别
政府强调：
📄 当前咨询（Community Consultation）
- 收集服务改进意见
- 聚焦具体服务问题
⚖️ 正在议会审议的法案（Disability Support Services Bill）
- 建立法律框架
- 规定制度结构与职责
Disabled people and their carers will see further improvements to disability support services with a new community consultation, and work about to get underway to provide better support for family carers, Disability Issues Minister Louise Upston says.
“Disabled people, their carers and families deserve services that work well in everyday life,” Louise Upston says.
“From 8 June to 31 July, Disability Support Services will be asking the disability community how we can further improve key service areas so they’re more effective and responsive to the needs of disabled people and those who support them.
“Feedback from the community has already led to positive changes to flexible funding, needs assessments – including carers’ needs – and making the system more fair, transparent, consistent, and sustainable.
“But we know there is more to do to.
“This consultation builds on what we have heard already from the disability community and focuses on what good support looks like in key areas the community has said matter most.
“It will ask for people’s ideas on more flexible supports, better planning for life changes, outcomes that matter, better information and advice, making it easier to give feedback, and better respite options for carers.”
Louise Upston says the feedback on respite options for carers will help shape a new support package for family carers.
“As part of this Government’s focus on carers, I have asked DSS to work on a new package of financial and other support, giving more certainty and consistency for family carers. This could include a carer payment, improved respite options, and other practical support.
DSS currently supports disabled people to employ a family or whānau member using flexible funding.
“We are looking at better ways to support family carers than formal employment arrangements. These can be complex, difficult to administer and don’t apply well to family care.”
Louise Upston says feedback from this community consultation will shape wider improvements to strengthen disability support services, including the carer support package.
“This work will take time, and we want to get it right. There will be further engagement with carer groups and representatives to develop the carer support package.
“My priority is making sure we are fixing the basics of disability support and building a sustainable future which disabled people, their families and carers can rely on.
“Across my portfolios, I’m firmly focused on ensuring New Zealanders in the greatest need can access support. That’s why it’s so important we have a fair, clear and simple disability system in place.
“In recent Budgets, our Government has already committed a record investment of $2.1 billion of additional funding into the disability support system,” Louise Upston says.
Editors Notes
The DSS community consultation is a separate and different process from the Government’s DSS Bill currently going through Parliament.
The DSS community consultation seeks input on focused service improvements in areas the disability community has told us matter most to them. Disabled people and those who support them can find out how to take part on the DSS website. www.disabilitysupport.govt.nz/haveyoursay
The Government’s Bill sets a legislative framework for how Disability Support Service operates and what it does. Information about the Bill is on the Parliament website.Disability Support Services Bill
The Carer Support Package will be developed with targeted engagement with carer groups and representatives. More information on this planned engagement will be available from DSS soon.
www.disabilitysupport.govt.nz/improving-dss/improving-support-for-family-carers
