July 16th 2023.
It has been revealed that the number of patients waiting a year or more for NHS treatment has increased by 15% in the last year. Despite the Prime Minister's promise to make reducing NHS waiting lists one of his top five priorities, 385,000 people are now waiting for urgent appointments.
Data from NHS England shows that 333,119 people were waiting 52 weeks for treatment in May 2022, rising to 385,022 a year later. The Liberal Democrats have highlighted the postcode lottery of NHS waiting times across the country, with certain areas being more affected than others.
For example, in Trafford Integrated Care Board and Manchester ICB in the North West, close to 13% of patients have been on an NHS waiting list for at least a year. Similarly, in Brighton and Hove and Stockport, one in ten patients have been waiting for care for at least twelve months. Sunderland in the North East, on the other hand, has fewer than 1% of patients enduring a year-long delay.
Daisy Cooper, the Lib Dem health and social care spokeswoman, commented that: “Rishi Sunak promised that NHS waiting lists would fall, instead they keep rising with thousands of people left waiting in pain for the treatment they need. These figures reveal a stark postcode lottery, with some areas seeing more than one in eight patients who have been stuck on an NHS waiting list for a year or more.”
The Government has said it is taking “immediate action” to reduce the waiting times, but Cooper believes that “Ministers have to take responsibility for tackling these unacceptable waits for treatment, instead of blaming everyone but themselves.”
A spokesman from the Department of Health and Social Care said: “This Government is working to cut waiting times and the NHS is treating record numbers of patients each day. We have virtually eliminated 18-month waits and are taking immediate action to bring down waits of over a year, including reducing the number of patients requiring outpatient follow-up appointments.”
It's clear that the NHS is under immense strain due to years of Conservative neglect, and the Government must take responsibility for tackling the unacceptable waits for treatment. With 385,000 people currently waiting for operations and treatment, it's more important than ever that immediate action is taken to reduce waiting times.
[This article has been trending online recently and has been generated with AI. Your feed is customized.]
[Generative AI is experimental.]
