First, let's make it clear. I am not associated with Thermomix, I do not sell this clever little device, represent them and nor do I know anybody else who is a sales rep or otherwise involved with Thermomix. I personally could only afford the ALDI clone and I lean towards eating chicken nuggets over making a proper meal.

Now we are clear on that, lets delve into how the Thermomix can save the NDIS from financial ruin and help it to become a sustainable scheme that can go on forever. Bold claims, I know, but hear me out.

For anybody who may be remotely connected with the NDIS, as either a participant, carer of a participant, observer, supporter, or detractor, the Thermomix is up there with NDIS funded yachts and sex workers for the outrage their attempted purchase can elicit.

Why? I hear you ask. Well, after researching google, a Thermomix costs $2359 at the time of writing this article. And certainly, if you or I cannot afford an obscenely priced Thermomix and must buy the cheaper ALDI version, or just cook our food on the stove like everyone else then why should people be able to use our taxes to buy one just because they have a disability, right?

Sure, that seems like a very solid argument on the surface. All of us people not funded under the NDIS do not have the privilege of using this hi-tech device, because many of us do not earn enough to warrant spending over $2000 on it. The government is not going to give us any money to buy one either! If we wanted one, we would need to save up for it, sell a kidney or go into debt. Nope, it is not reasonable OR necessary for people to have a Thermomix. It's a privilege for people who have too much money and are, most definitely, very lazy!

Most importantly, people funded under the NDIS get plenty of help from support workers, and those support workers can assist with meal preparation and cooking. Or you might be aware that meal prep and delivery is funded under the NDIS too, so they could just have their meals delivered. There are a lot of better options out there, right?

I'll admit, I may have tried to trick you into believing that I too, have an issue with people using their NDIS funds to buy a Thermomix. (Although the headline should have given you a hint that I don't)

The truth is, if the people who needed a Thermomix could use their NDIS funds to purchase one, the scheme would save an absolute mint. Yes, a mint. That is my mathematical term. I don't like maths; I am not good at it. I will try my best to lay this out for you. Just know that a mint is a LOT of money.

Across my team I would say we have been the nominated support coordinators for approximately ten people who have asked to have a Thermomix funded under their plan. Let me give you a break down of what that usually costs.

An occupational therapy report is required to show evidence that the person has a legitimate need for a Thermomix. This usually involves the O.T observing the person in the kitchen and if they can navigate the stove, safely use pots and pans, utensils and serve up food. Between the observation, the report writing and travel we could be looking at anywhere between $1500-$2000 for the assessment alone.

During this period of observation, a support worker may be required to facilitate engagement between the individual and the OT, so let's just say that the support worker does a 3-hour shift to ensure that the assessment goes as planned. This cost will be approximately $171

Let's say a Support Coordinator is involved. They will organise the OT, liaise with them, follow up the report and then help submit the evidence to the NDIS. Let's say everything goes right and there are no problems for the coordinator and budget $364 or around 3.5 hours for their time,

Then let's not forget that your tax dollars are going to pay the wages of the planner who is going to read all this evidence and decline the Thermomix as not being reasonable and necessary. A quick check online see's a wage of around $44 per hour, so let's just chuck in $88 as another cost.

So far, we have spent $2123.00, and nobody has a Thermomix. The participant may decide to appeal the decision and then you can add in all the extra costs of that. For the sake of my non-maths brain and yours, we won't go down that road, but if it got as far as the administrative appeals tribunal (AAT) where the NDIA loses approximately 60% of its cases, the costs sure keep adding up!

Without fail, all the rejections that have come back for our team have outlined the fact that a support worker can be used to prep meals, cook, and serve the meal for the participant and I gather, any family they have?  So, let's say that is a minimum of a four-hour shift to achieve the prepping of meals, cooking of meals, pack away enough meals for the days they are not there and then clean up the mess. Let's imagine the individual has the support worker in twice a week to do this task.

This is a total of 8 hours per week. At approximately $57 an hour. The cost per week is $456 the cost per year is $23712.00

Meal prep and delivery costs, for 3 meals a day, over the course of a year can hit the $12000 mark or more.

Unless you are also terrible at maths, you can see where we are going with this.

In the space of one month, we will spend the same amount on support workers that we could spend on a Thermomix. In the space of a year, we will spend a whopping twenty-three thousand dollars of your hard-earned tax dollars to avoid paying for a Thermomix.

Let's call our participant Shelley. Shelley wants to cook for her family. Shelley loves cooking, but because Shelley has some cognitive issues due to an acquired brain injury, she struggles to follow a recipe. Shelley has shown during her OT assessment that she walks away from the stove and burns food and forgets to turn the stove off. This becomes a real danger for her and her family. Shelley is capable of safely cutting up meat and vegetables so can food prep for herself. Shelley really, really wants to make her family's meals independently and does not want a support worker in her house for 4 hours doing something that she wants to do, and could do, with the right tools.

Shelley can't buy the cheaper ALDI version because that one does not have a guided cooking function which helps you know exactly what you need to do to prepare a meal. The cheaper version does not have a digital screen that shows you pictures of the steps and what things should look like. Both things are important to Shelley, as they mean she can prepare and cook her own food independently. 

Instead, we are forcing Shelley, and all the other Shelley's, to use twenty-three thousand dollars worth of funding a year, we are taking away her ability to learn the skills she wants to learn and forcing her to rely on paid help when we could spend around $2000 and help Shelley to live a more independent life. A life where one of her goals is to simply cook for her family, a life where she gets to do the things she used to do and the things the rest of us can do.

The Thermomix is an analogy for all the little and not so little decision the NDIA makes that increase costs, gouge funding, and make participants look like they are asking for too much. There is a fundamental problem at hand when the NDIA would rather spend twenty-three thousand dollars instead of two thousand dollars and take the rights away of a disabled person.

Multiply this amount so it captures all the Shelley's across Australia, who are fighting tooth and nail just to buy a device that can make all the difference in the world to them, and you can see where some of this "unsustainability" rhetoric is coming from. Shelley is trying to save you money, while achieving a basic goal that will help her to live a "normal' life.

The problem is in the bureaucracy, and the NDIS refusal to show any flexibility in the way they build plans and their rigid interpretation and lack of understanding of the legislation that applies. 

The problem is not Shelley, or her much needed Thermomix. It is time to consider that your tax dollars might be being "wasted" by the very people who make you pay them.