Mr Abbott said on Wednesday the waiting times in ER for non-critical patients would serve as a natural disincentive. Tony Abbott: defended his planned slash to the Medicare rebate. "If you don't have a serious complaint, you wait, sometimes quite a long time," he said on 3AW radio. The changes come into effect on January 19 as part of the changes to the original $7 GP co-payment, which the former Health Minister Peter Dutton revamped at the end of 2014. Mr Abbott has defended his decision, saying it will encourage GPs to spend more time with their patients.

He said doctors should be welcoming the changes because they will see shorter visits funded at a lower rate and longer visits funded at a higher rate. "Exactly how much patients are charged is always a question for the doctors but these government changes are designed to try to ensure that doctors spend a reasonable amount of time with their patients," he said. "Just a few months ago, the AMA were saying that they didn't want to see six-minute medicine, they didn't want to support bulk-billing clinics, they wanted to see doctors spending more time with their patients and that's exactly what these changes are designed to produce." But Mr Abbott acknowledged the decision to cut the rebate was a "difficult" but necessary decision because, without "tough choices", the cost of Medicare would spiral out of control - from $8 billion a decade ago to $34 billion in a decade's time. Four crossbench senators, including independents Nick Xenophon and Jacqui Lambie, as well as Motoring Enthusiast senator Ricky Muir and Palmer United Party's Glenn Lazarus have said they will vote against the regulation when it is presented to the Parliament for approval in February.

Senator Lazarus, PUP's leader in the Senate, on Wednesday confirmed he will be opposing the measure. His office said Senator Lazarus is open to speaking with new Health Minister Sussan Ley on health issues but will not support a $20 cut to the rebate. His office said he is "he is dead set against it, absolutely against it, talking in the senate, supporting". The Greens, who hold 10 seats, have also said they will vote down the government's regulation, meaning if Labor also oppose the cuts, the changes would be defeated. The Prime Minister called on the non-government senators opposing the cuts to show their own savings.

Loading "We're serious about economic reform, we're serious about budget responsibility. Is the Senate? Now, that's the question," he said. Follow us on Twitter