Laws to fulfil a Labor promise to abolish the card are due to be debated in the Senate this week, with the government hopeful of getting them passed with amendments.
Northern Territory coalition senator Jacinta Price said she was standing up for retaining the cards due to her own experience as an Indigenous woman.
"I've been confronted with alcohol abuse. I've been confronted with alcohol-related deaths. I have been confronted with the way alcohol has impacted my family directly," she told reporters in Canberra on Monday.
"I stood up for this card because I know and have seen and have watched the benefits for the most vulnerable in communities."
Liberal MP Rowen Ramsey said the card had reduced the number of alcohol abuse-related deaths from seven to zero in Ceduna, in his South Australian electorate.
"This is providing a heap of cheap bandaids while on another hand opening up the wound," he said.
"It protects those people who are unable to manage their own lives."
The card covers more than 17,000 welfare recipients and can carry up to 80 per cent of Centrelink payments.
That money can't be withdrawn in cash or spent on gambling or alcohol.
But the government argues the cards have failed and stopped individuals and families from making decisions for themselves.
Welfare recipients will be able to opt into a voluntary income management scheme.
Labor has flagged a range of amendments to secure support from the Greens and crossbench.
The changes included providing access to more businesses and enabling BPAY and online shopping.
Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth said a pin could also be able to be put on the card to prevent family members from stealing the cash.
Almost $50 million has also been put aside for additional alcohol and drug treatment services as well as more money for employment programs.
Additional staff for Services Australia will be put on to support the transition.
Ms Rishworth said the additional funding wasn't about securing votes in the Senate but rather implementing measures to "actually address the underlying problems".
"Whether that is drug and alcohol or other programs, it's critically important we deliver," she said.
But Mr Ramsey said the need for additional funding proved there would be a spike in drug use when the card was abolished.
Opposition health spokeswoman Anne Ruston accused the government of failing to consult communities.
"They come out and they say during the election campaign 'we are going to get rid of the cashless debit card' and then retrospectively they go out to the communities," she said.
South Australian Liberal senator Kerrynne Liddle says she consulted with people in pubs and gaming rooms who admitted while they didn't like the card, they needed it.
If passed this week, welfare recipients will be able to move off the card by October 4.
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