Several longstanding disability advocacy organisations across multiple Australian states have been told by the Department of Health they will not be part of the new funding model replacing the decades-old program that funds such groups, ABC News reported on 12 November 2026. The change to the funding arrangements was due at the end of that month.

Villamanta Disability Rights Legal Service in regional Victoria said it would lose 30 per cent of its total funding, with CEO Annie Nash saying the organisation could no longer accept new clients. Disability Advocacy Network Australia acting CEO Cherry Baylosis said the changes were out of touch with what people with disability needed and that many advocates already could not keep up with demand. A Department of Health spokesperson said the new model responded to disability royal commission recommendations, with up to $184 million (GST exclusive) available over six financial years from 2026–27 to 2031–32, and that organisations funded under the current model would continue receiving it until February 2027.

The report linked the situation to the Albanese government's overhaul of the more-than $50 billion NDIS, which supports more than 782,000 participants and is expected to see 240,000 removed over four years, saving more than $38 billion.