What The 2026 Federal Budget Means for Families of Neurodivergent Children

The 2026-27 Federal Budget was handed down tonight. There's a lot in it. Here's what matters most for families navigating the health system, disability services and the NDIS.

We know there's alot of information and noise following tonight's broadcast, so we've focused on the areas that directly affect our community.

Health and Medicare

The government is investing $8.4 billion in Medicare to expand bulk billing, aiming to deliver 18 million extra bulk-billed GP visits each year by 2030. For families who rely on GP referrals to access allied health, paediatricians and mental health support, this matters. Fewer out-of-pocket costs at the GP level means one less barrier at the front door of the system.

There's $657.9 million to open 50 new Medicare Urgent Care Clinics. The treasurer shared that by July, four in five Australians will live within 20 minutes of one. For families who've sat in emergency departments with a dysregulated child because there was no other option on a weekend, this is worth knowing about.

PBS costs are being reduced, with the maximum cost of medicines dropping from $31.60 to $25 per script. There's also $784.6 million allocated to lower overall medicine costs. If your child is on medication for ADHD, anxiety, or any other condition managed through the PBS, that reduction adds up across a year.

Public hospitals are getting a $1.8 billion one-off funding boost, with the government's broader commitment to the public hospital system at $25 billion. Long wait times for developmental assessments, paediatric services and child mental health through the public system remain one of the biggest pain points for families. Whether this funding translates into shorter waits for the services our community relies on remains to be seen.

The NDIS

This is the section families have been watching most closely. The government has confirmed it will introduce the National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill following the release of this budget.

The core changes remain what was announced in April. Eligibility will shift from diagnosis-based access to functional capacity assessments. The government aims to reduce the number of NDIS participants from 760,000 to around 600,000 by the end of the decade. The NDIS is being positioned as the primary savings vehicle in this budget, with the government aiming to slow annual growth from 10% to 2% over four years and targeting significant savings over the next decade.

The average participant budget is expected to drop from around $31,000 to $26,000 over time. Participant support budgets for social, civic, and community participation, and for capacity building, will be progressively adjusted from 1 October 2026.

For families, the practical impact depends on your child's level of support needs. Children "with permanent and significant disability" will remain on the NDIS. Children with "low to moderate needs" (particularly those aged 8 and under) will be transitioned to the Thriving Kids program.

Let's be clear about something. The NDIS was established to support people with permanent and significant disability. Autism is a permanent disability. ADHD is a permanent neurological condition. These are not phases. They are not developmental hiccups that resolve with a bit of early intervention and a community program. Autistic children become autistic adults. Children with ADHD become adults with ADHD. Support needs may change over a lifetime, but they do not disappear.

When the government describes children with autism as having "less significant support needs" and redirects them away from the scheme that was built for permanent disability, it needs to answer a fundamental question: if not the NDIS, then what? And not in 2028 when Thriving Kids is supposedly at scale. Now. What happens to these children now?

A child who masks all day at school and falls apart at home has a permanent disability. A child who needs OT to dress themselves, speech therapy to communicate, and psychology to manage anxiety that comes from living in a world not built for their brain has a permanent disability. A child whose parents have left careers, spent tens of thousands of dollars and restructured their entire lives around their care has a permanent disability.

Calling their needs "low to moderate" doesn't make them less permanent. It makes them less visible, and building a system that only funds the needs it can see is not reform. It's rationing.

Thriving Kids

The budget commits of $4 billion over five years ($2 billion from the Commonwealth) to implement Thriving Kids, which will provide community-based supports for children aged 0 to 8 with developmental delay or autism who have low to moderate support needs.

The first services are expected from 1 October 2026, with the program at scale from 1 January 2028.

Children currently receiving individualised NDIS funding (funding that allows families to choose their therapists, build relationships with providers, and tailor support to their child's specific needs) will be moved to a program delivered through schools, GPs, clinics and community hubs. A program that has a fixed budget and is not an entitlement scheme. A program whose design is, by the government's own admission, yet to be finalised.

Read that again. They're legislating the exit before they've finished building the entrance.

Children already enrolled in the NDIS prior to 1 January 2028, "with developmental delay or autism and low-to-moderate support needs," will be subject to reassessment under the eligibility criteria in place prior to that date. For families, that means the plan your child has today is not guaranteed tomorrow.

The questions families keep asking remain unanswered in this budget. Will the community services be ready in time? Will there be out-of-pocket costs? Will the supports match what the NDIS currently provides? Will rural and regional families have access to the same services as families in metro areas? Will there be enough allied health professionals to deliver them?

The government keeps saying "more details will come in the months ahead." Families don't have months ahead. They have therapy appointments next week, school meetings next term, and children who need support right now.

Four billion dollars across five years sounds significant until you compare it to what these children currently receive through the NDIS. If current funding for this cohort sits at approximately $9 billion over the same period, Thriving Kids represents a reduction of more than half. For families doing the maths at the kitchen table tonight, the numbers don't add up, and they know it.

Disability inclusion funding

The budget includes $423.8 million to support inclusion and build the capacity of people with disability and their families. The details of how this will be allocated and what it will mean in practice for neurodivergent children and their families are not yet clear.

Cost-of-living measures that affect our families

Beyond health and disability, there are broader measures in this budget that will impact household budgets:

• The $250 working Australians tax offset provides some relief for working parents.

• Energy bill rebates continue, with a double-income household earning $150,000 receiving $150 in electricity rebates.

• PBS script costs dropping to $25 reduces the ongoing medication burden.

• Unemployment is forecast to rise to 4.25%, which matters for families already operating on reduced income because one parent has stepped back from work to care for their child.

• Inflation is expected to ease to 3%, down from higher levels driven in part by the Middle East conflict.

  
  

What The 2026 Federal Budget Means for Families of Neurodivergent Children

The health investments in this budget, including bulk-billing expansion, urgent care clinics, cheaper PBS scripts, and public hospital funding, are positive steps for families who interact with the health system regularly. Whether they'll translate into shorter wait times for developmental paediatricians, child psychologists and allied health professionals is the question that matters most for our community.

The NDIS changes are the biggest concern. The trajectory is clear: fewer participants, smaller budgets, and a shift from individualised funding to community-based services for children with "low-to-moderate needs". Families with children currently on the NDIS should stay in close contact with their plan managers and support coordinators as the legislation progresses.

For families whose children are not yet on the NDIS, the Thriving Kids program may become your pathway to support. Keep an eye on updates from the Department of Health and disability advocacy organisations as the design is finalised.

What you can do

Stay informed. Follow leading disability organisations for detailed analysis as the budget papers are unpacked over the coming days.

Talk to your support team. Your plan manager, support coordinator or LAC can help you understand how these changes apply to your specific situation.

Make your voice heard. The government has committed to ongoing consultation with the disability community. Parliamentary submissions, letters to your MP and engagement with peak bodies all shape how these policies land in practice.

Look after yourself tonight. Budget nights can feel overwhelming when every line item feels personal. You're not alone in this.