A 20 per cent increase in the lifting fee paid to drivers of wheelchair accessible vehicles is expected to improve the availability of accessible transport for the thousands of Victorians who rely on these services.
The MPTP is in place to assist Victorians with accessibility and mobility needs by offering subsidised commercial passenger vehicle fares to members.
The program pays half the total fare of each trip taken by an MPTP member, up to $60.
A full lifting fee is also paid to drivers who help to move a passenger into a wheelchair accessible vehicle, or a partial lifting fee for loading an MPTP member’s wheelchair into a conventional commercial passenger vehicle that is not wheelchair accessible.
This lifting fee recognises the higher business cost of supplying WAV services and the additional time required to safely load and secure a wheelchair or scooter.
The full lifting fee paid by the Labor Government to the drivers of WAVs each time they pick up an MPTP member has now increased from $21.80 to $26.80.
New youth centres
Bendigo and Shepparton will be among community-based youth centres offering young people in central Victoria access to the mental health services they need.
Mental Health Minister Health Gabrielle Williams last week released designs to refurbish and modernise existing Youth Prevention and Recovery Care centres in Bendigo, Dandenong and Frankston.
The upgrades are part of an unprecedented $3.8 billion investment in the Victorian Budget 2021-22 which also includes five new YPARC services in Greater Ballarat, Greater Geelong, Greater Shepparton, Heidelberg and Traralgon.
As a key recommendation from the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System, YPARC services provide flexible, around-the clock clinical care for young people aged 16 to 25 — reducing pressure on hospitals by providing early intervention care, and an alternative to hospital admission with recovery-focused treatment.
The facility designs reveal the exterior, internal fit-outs and outdoor areas, which have been carefully considered to create a welcoming and home-like environment to support young people to receive the contemporary and appropriate care they need on their recovery journey.
The designs include main lounge and living areas, kitchen and outdoor areas — with barbecue spaces and a sensory courtyard to promote communal living indoors and out, encouraging rest and recovery as well as support for family visits.
