Nearly 10 million people in England could be on the NHS waiting list

Nearly 10 million people across England could be waiting for an NHS appointment or treatment, 2 million more than previously estimated, according to research from the Office for National Statistics.

The ONS survey of around 90,000 adults found that 21% of patients were waiting for a hospital appointment or to start treatment on the NHS.

Extrapolated, this amounts to 9.7 million people. According to official NHS statistics, the waiting list stood at 7.6 million people in January.

The research found that delays were greatest among 16-24 year olds, one in five of whom said they had experienced wait times of more than a year.

The study was conducted in January and February and was part of the annual survey of winter coronavirus infections among adults aged 16 and over.

The ONS said the survey was the first of its kind to assess the experiences of adults waiting for hospital appointments, tests or medical treatment. It says the data is experimental, based on self-reported data, and may differ from other waitlist statistics.

Andrew Gwynne, the shadow health secretary, said: “Pull away coverage and the crisis in the NHS is even worse than it seemed. One in five people in England are on waiting lists, and they are waiting longer than ever before.

“Rishi Sunak has broken his promise to cut waiting lists, and now he plans to close services and cut doctors and nurses. The longer the Conservatives stay in office, the longer patients wait.

“Only Labor has a plan to reduce waiting lists. We will provide 2 million additional operations and appointments in the evenings and on weekends, so that patients are seen on time again.”

Sir Julian Hartley, the chief executive of NHS Providers, said: “No patient should have to wait longer than necessary for the care they need, especially as worsening conditions can lead to more physical, emotional or mental problems.

“Hospitals, mental health services and community trusts are working incredibly hard to clear the backlog and deliver high-quality, timely patient care. But they face deep-seated challenges, including workforce shortages and a lack of physical capacity within the NHS and social care.”

The ONS survey also found that one in 20 people who called their GP were told to call back on another day. A third of respondents found it ‘difficult to very difficult’ to get in touch with their GP practice.

According to NHS England, the NHS offers around 1.4 million GP appointments on average every working day.

An NHS spokesperson said: “The officially published statistics on NHS waiting lists show that there were 6.3 million patients on NHS waiting lists at the end of January and only 4.2% of waiting times lasted longer than a year.

“Efforts are underway to reduce the longest waiting times for patients, but despite pressure and industrial action, hardworking NHS staff have ensured the Covid backlog has fallen for four months in a row and 18-month waiting times have been reduced by almost 90% peak has fallen.

“When it comes to GP care, almost two-thirds of people are satisfied with their experience, and millions more are getting an appointment compared to before the pandemic. The latest NHS data shows that 30.5 million appointments were made by GPs and their teams in February 2024, compared to 24.7 million in February 2020.”