The length of time patients wait for NHS treatment quickly turns into a ZIP code lottery. new analysis reveals.
Official figures show more than 50,000 patients a year waiting to be treated in the NHS compared to 2022, despite Rishi Sunak's promise to reduce delays.
The PM has made reducing NHS waiting lists one of his top five priorities ahead of the next election, and the government hopes to eliminate the wait of more than a year by 2025.
However, the Liberal Democrats said NHS data show that year-to-date waiting increased by 15% in the 12 months to May, with one in eight patients experiencing that wait in some areas.
NHS England data shows that in May 2022, 333,119 patients had been waiting for treatment for 52 weeks. By May 2023, that number had risen to 385,022.
These figures also showed that nearly 100,000 patients have even longer waits of 65 weeks or more, and more than 11,000 have 78 weeks or more.
Worst Integrated NHS Care Tips
Overall waiting lists have reached their worst level, with a total of 7.47 million patients waiting for treatment in England at the end of May, up 50,000 from April. This is the highest since NHS registration began in England in 2007.
When broken down locally, Liberal Democrats said the numbers revealed an “absolute postcode lottery”, with a yearly wait much more common in some regions than others.
Trafford Integrated Care Council and Manchester ICB in the North West were the hardest hit areas, with about 13% of patients on the NHS waiting list for at least 12 months.
p>In Brighton and Hove, as well as Stockport, one in ten patients had been waiting for care for at least a year in May.
Sunderland in the North East had the least number of waiting times compared to councils in England : less than one percent of patients suffered a one-year delay.
Daisy Cooper, the Liberal Democrats' spokesperson for health and social care, said the government has failed to stop the growth of waiting lists.
Mr Sunak has vowed that NHS waiting lists will shrink, instead they continue to grow, with thousands of people having to wait painfully to get the treatment they need.
“These numbers show an absolute zip code lottery: in some areas, more than one in eight patients are stuck on the NHS waiting list for a year or more.”
“More difficult”
The PM said strikes in the NHS have made it harder to reduce waiting lists.
Last week, junior doctors launched a wage strike that will last until 7 a.m. Tuesday, and the waiting lists are already are struggling due to longstanding staffing shortages and the impact of the pandemic.
Ms Cooper added that the government needs to do more to reduce waiting times.
“The government's inability to deal with rising NHS wait times is causing untold suffering and hurting our economy, leaving people too ill to return to work.
“The National Health Service is on its knees after years of conservative neglect. Ministers must take responsibility for addressing unacceptable waiting times for treatment, rather than blaming everyone but themselves.”
A spokesman for the Department of Health and Welfare said: “The government is working to reduce waiting times and the National Health Service is admitting a record number of patients for treatment every day.
“We have virtually eliminated the 18-month wait and are taking immediate action to reduce more than a year of waiting, including reducing the number of patients requiring outpatient follow-up visits. ”.
“ Our Electoral Recovery Task Force is also working to unlock the independent sector so patients can be treated more quickly.”
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