Danica and Otis
Content Warning: These stories are about violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation and may include references to suicide or self-harming behaviours. They may contain graphic descriptions and strong language and may be distressing. Some narratives may be about First Nations people who have passed away. If you need support, please see Contact & support.
Danica has ‘untreatable fibromyalgia’ and receives the Disability Support Pension (DSP).
She is from a culturally and linguistically diverse background and needs to travel overseas with her husband and carer Otis.
Otis told the Royal Commission that travel is ‘an integral part of modern living’. This is ‘particularly true in ethnically diverse societies such as Australia where almost a quarter of the population is overseas born’.
Under the current rules, Danica’s DSP is stopped if she is out of the country for longer than 28 days.
Otis believes this is unreasonable. ‘Most pensioners have significant impairments [meaning] that – travel overseas and return within the allowed timeframe leaves them exhausted for weeks if not months.’
To suspend or cancel pensioners only source of income after 28 days is ‘disenfranchising those who already face considerable social and economic hardship,’ he says.
Otis and Danica could request ‘unlimited/indefinite portability’ of the DSP. The payment would continue no matter how long they were away.
‘However when pensioners apply for indefinite portability, Centrelink advise them to undergo a fresh DSP assessment,’ Otis explained.
The injury, illness or impairment is reassessed. The person supplies medical evidence, and this is assessed by job capacity assessors (JCA). Otis told us the JCA make a recommendation to Centrelink which does its own assessment, and ‘it is not uncommon for JCA’s recommendations to be overturned’.
Otis has heard accounts from pensioners ‘who have lost their only source of income’ when they agreed to undergo a fresh assessment.
‘People who do not qualify … are immediately removed from DSP … and leap-frogged to join Newstart, where incomes are 50 per cent less.’
Otis believes ‘the Federal Government uses legislation to abuse and exploit people who are on the DSP’.
He considers the legislation a breach of Australia’s obligations under a number of international conventions, including the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
Otis and Danica would like to see the removal of the limit ‘for travel to be 28 days in 12 months’ and ‘the length of stay … should be … at least 6 weeks to enable those pensioners to recover once they get overseas’.
Disclaimer: This is the story of a person who shared their personal experience with the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability through a submission or private session. The names in this story are pseudonyms. The person who shared this experience was not a witness and their account is not evidence. They did not take an oath or affirmation before providing the story. Nothing in this story constitutes a finding of the Royal Commission. Any views expressed are those of the person who shared their experience, not of the Royal Commission.