What are direct payments?
Direct payments is one of the funding administration arrangements available to people with a disability to manage their Individual Support Package. With direct payments the funding is transferred directly to the person to purchase supports in line with their funding plan.
If a person using direct payments wants to buy services from my organisation, what do we need to consider?
As a disability service provider, you must provide services to direct payments users as you would any other service user. This means complying with the Disability Act 2006, the terms of your registration and/or your funding agreement with the Department of Human Services (the department).
Under direct payments, disability service providers have a direct relationship with the direct payments user. It is important for disability service providers to:
- discuss with the direct payments user how best to meet their needs
- discuss invoicing arrangements as service providers will invoice direct payments users for any services purchased
- consider whether a contract may be useful and if so, ensure it is fair to both parties
- discuss and establish how you will continue to communicate.
Ongoing feedback from direct payments users has highlighted the importance of good administrative practices of service providers including:
- prompt and accurate invoicing
- prompt and accurate corrections of any errors identified on invoices
- prompt cashing of cheques paid
- providing a range of options for payment of invoices such as Bpay, online payment of invoices and the use of debit cards.
What are the responsibilities of direct payments users when purchasing services?
Direct payments users have a responsibility to:
- discuss the nature of the service they wish to purchase with the service provider
- inform the service provider if their needs change
- pay invoices on time and keep copies of invoices
- give service providers reasonable notice of a change in circumstances
- budget the funding to meet their financial commitments.
If a person currently using our services plans to change their funding administration arrangement to direct payments,how will we be advised of this?
Once a person has a revised funding plan with a funding administration arrangement of direct payments, the department will give a disability service provider two months’ notice of the change unless agreed otherwise.
The person is required to provide notice if they do not plan to continue purchasing services from you after they have changed their funding administration arrangements. Service providers should clarify any ongoing arrangements regarding service delivery and invoicing with the person.
What happens to any unspent funds that we hold on behalf of the person?
Once a person has started direct payments, your organisation will be sent an individual funding reconciliation form to complete. The completed reconciliation identifies the amount of funding transferred to the service provider for the person, the costs of the services provided and the balance of funding remaining. The reconciliation form is forwarded to the department to arrange for the balance of funding to be returned. The department then transfers these funds to the direct payments user.
What are my organisation’s data reporting responsibilities?
Service providers are not responsible for reporting data to the department on services purchased by direct payment users.
How are complaints from direct payments users resolved?
As a registered disability service provider under the terms of the Disability Act 2006, your organisation is required to have in place a process for dealing with complaints from all users, including direct payments users. This means seeking local resolution wherever possible, or providing information to the person about what to do if a resolution cannot be reached. The direct payments user has access to the Disability Services Commissioner in relation to complaints about services you provide.
What can my organisation do if a direct payments user isn’t meeting their responsibilities?
Direct payments users have, through two trials of direct payments in Victoria, demonstrated their commitment to meeting their accountability requirements including paying invoices promptly. In the event a direct payments user is not meeting their responsibilities and after reasonable attempts have been made to address concerns, contact the regional direct payments contact officer.
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