This paper examines the impact of individualised government funding for disability supports, through the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS), on the prevalence of autism in Australia. We use panel data that links disability diagnoses with administrative data to compare the trends in reported autism prevalence across regions. We use a contemporary difference-in-difference estimation approach that is robust to heterogeneous treatment effects, to identify the causal impact of the staggered implementation of this government policy.

Maathu Ranjan is a 2023 Sir Roland Wilson PhD Scholar with experience across disability policy, insurance and actuarial modelling.