Source: Progress Press [Letters to the Editor]

NO FAULT funding is the only way people in our community with disabilities can hope for a fair go.

Every day, our staff assist people with disabilities acquired due to motor vehicle accidents, assaults and other traumas and illness.  We see first hand how people can reach degrees of independence never dreamed of, if only they have enough resources and assistance.

We also see the astounding funding inequities between people with similar disabilities, caused by different circumstances.

In Victoria, if you have an acquired brain injury from a stroke, you might receive a few hours assistnace a week.

If you have a similar injury from a car accident, you could expect to receive 30 hours or more a week.

If you have a disability requiring constant support and care, and very little funding, you will probably end up in a nursing home or hospital bed.

Both options are costly in terms of money, quality of life, and stress for families and communities.

Surely, and logically, funding should be based on the degree of disability, not the cause!

Richard Dent, chief executive, EW Tipping Foundation.