Medical diagnoses will not immediately qualify patients for National Disability Insurance Scheme funding under a Federal Government plan to cut costs by billions of dollars a year.

Minister for Health and Ageing Mark Butler has announced a suite of proposals, including stricter registration rules for providers and fewer reassessments, as he fights to control spending on the $50 billion-a-year National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).

He says he wants “access lists” — diagnoses that let patients enter the NDIS without further assessment based on their condition and its severity — to give way to “objective assessment” of every patient’s needs.

“In line with the scheme’s original intent, access will be based upon a significant reduction in a person’s functional capacity that impacts their day-to-day living,” he told the National Press Club on Wednesday.