Toltz and National Disability Insurance Agency

This matter concerned an application for review by Mr. Toltz against a decision by the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) regarding his eligibility for the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). The dispute centred on whether Mr. Toltz met the access criteria for the NDIS, specifically concerning the nature and impact of his impairments. The case was heard by D. Connolly SM in the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

The primary legal issues before the Tribunal were whether Mr. Toltz had a disability attributable to a permanent impairment that resulted in a substantially reduced functional capacity in one or more of the specified NDIS domains, and whether he was likely to require NDIS support for his lifetime. The Tribunal was required to consider his bilateral keratoconus, a vision impairment, and a generalised anxiety disorder, assessing the permanence of these conditions and their impact on his ability to communicate, learn, interact socially, manage mobility, care for himself, and self-manage.

The Tribunal found that Mr. Toltz's bilateral keratoconus was a permanent impairment, satisfying one limb of the access criteria. It also determined that his associated generalised anxiety disorder, claustrophobia, and panic disorder, while treatable with psychological therapy, were likely to be permanent given their direct link to his lifelong vision impairment and the ongoing challenges it presented. The Tribunal then assessed whether these impairments resulted in a substantially reduced functional capacity. It concluded that Mr. Toltz's vision impairment significantly impacted his ability to communicate and learn, necessitating the use of specific assistive technologies such as JAWS and ZoomText, which were not considered commonly used items. The Tribunal also found that his vision impairment affected his mobility and self-care. While his anxiety did not significantly impact his communication and learning, or social interaction, the overall assessment of his functional capacity led the Tribunal to conclude that paragraph 24(1)(c) of the Act was met.

Ultimately, the Tribunal was satisfied that Mr. Toltz's impairments resulted in a substantially reduced functional capacity in communication, learning, mobility, and self-care, and that these impairments affected his capacity for social and economic participation. Consequently, the Tribunal found that Mr. Toltz was likely to require NDIS support for his lifetime and set aside the NDIA's decision, remitting the matter to the NDIA to determine the supports to be funded.