The National Disability Insurance Agency’s (NDIA) 3-year pricing workplan outlines how
it will review, redesign and implement NDIS
pricing frameworks from now until 2028. The workplan sets out a staged approach that
will shape future pricing across therapy, early childhood intervention, and supports for participants with
complex support needs.
The workplan spans 3 phases:
- 2025–26 (year 1): Evidence building
- 2025–26 Annual Pricing Review (APR)
- Quality Support – therapy pilot
- thin markets: rural and remote services review – application of the
Monash Modified Model
- broader therapy pricing review may potentially commence.
- 2026–27 (year 2): Pricing design and review
- pricing reviews continue
- information gathered in year 1 will be used to design reforms.
- 2027–28 (year 3): Implementation and consolidation
- New pricing approaches will be implemented, monitored and refined to support longer-term
stewardship of the scheme.
The NDIA aims for pricing work to remain aligned with broader NDIS quality, safety and
regulatory reforms and is being developed in collaboration with the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission and the
Department of Health, Disability and Ageing.
How the NDIA will use data from pilots and other sources
We know many of you deliver NDIS-funded therapy supports as sole traders or within small
practices. You’ve told us that fair and sustainable NDIS pricing must reflect the real costs and
diversity of the work you do, and we couldn’t agree more.
We are concerned that the NDIA’s Quality Support – therapy pilot will only capture data from
large, registered providers, and wrote to the NDIA CEO in December 2025 to advocate for change. The NDIA’s
responses indicate they plan to include data capture from smaller providers and sole traders through other
mechanisms.
The NDIA has said that the Quality Supports – therapy pilot is examining how variations in
service delivery, professional practice and participant needs are reflected in pricing. Insights from this pilot will
help shape future therapy pricing work.
The NDIA has said that evidence from pilots will be considered alongside:
- Annual Pricing Review submissions
- NDIA administrative and utilisation data
- external benchmarks
- targeted engagement with small, regional and sole-trader providers.
This means your input through future consultations remains critical.
Differentiated pricing discussions
We interpret differentiated pricing to mean different prices for NDIS therapy services in different
situations.
The NDIA started exploring differentiated pricing approaches with stakeholders in its 2025–26
Annual Pricing Review Consultation.
We observed that differentiated pricing terminology in the 2025–26 Annual Pricing
Review consultation paper lacked clarity, made unsupported assumptions,
and the differentiated pricing proposals had not adequately explored possible unintended consequences. Our
submission generally did not support differentiation as proposed, and recommended the NDIA undertake
further independent research, supported by robust consultation, to define differentiation, understand risks
and impacts, and determine how it would work in practice.
The NDIA says that it is considering differentiation across areas including:
- provider registration and compliance requirements
- the complexity and intensity of participants’ support needs
- supporting providers who invest in training and supervision
- outcomes measurement
- market alignment and benchmarking: ensuring NDIS prices remain responsive to broader market conditions
and workforce trends.
We understand that differentiated pricing will be further examined in future NDIA consultations and will
continue to follow this closely.
What this could mean for you
This workplan indicates possible significant changes to future NDIS pricing for therapy services, including speech pathology. We will continue to engage with NDIA and other stakeholders, provide you with opportunities to have your say, and keep you informed as this work progresses.
How we are representing you
SPA is actively representing your views in our advocacy and
submissions. We conducted a member survey to gather feedback and evidence for our submission to
the 2025–26 Annual Pricing Review.
SPA has also established a NDIS Reference Group to guide our ongoing
policy development and advocacy. We will continue to provide updates, opportunities for you
to provide input, and advocate for pricing that supports quality
services, business sustainability, access to services, and participant choice and control.
More information: