The number of people waiting more than a year for NHS treatment is rising as overall waiting figures stagnate
The number of people waiting more than a year for treatment on the NHS has risen, while progress in tackling overall waiting times has stalled, official figures show.
Health analysts warned that the waiting list in England remains ‘stubbornly high’, with millions of people in pain or unable to work.
Figures from NHS England show that the backlog of routine hospital treatments was unchanged in March, after five consecutive monthly falls.
At the end of the month, an estimated 7.54 million treatments were waiting to be carried out, for 6.29 million patients, the same number as in February.
The list reached a record high in September 2023 with 7.77 million treatments and 6.50 million patients.
Other data published today shows a mixed picture, with success increasing in the number of people seen for a cancer diagnosis but waiting times of more than a year for treatment.
Siva Anandaciva, chief analyst at the King’s Fund, a health think tank, said: ‘As the NHS emerges from a harsh winter, it is encouraging to see some green shoots in today’s statistics, which show improvements have been made in several key measures . of cancer care.
‘In March, 77 per cent of people had their cancer diagnosed or ruled out within 28 days of referral, exceeding the national target of 75 per cent.
‘But the road ahead to make further progress in restoring performance in other areas of the NHS, including reducing long waiting times for scheduled care and emergency care, will be a long one.
‘The waiting list in hospitals remains stubbornly high at 7.5 million in March, which equates to 6.3 million people waiting for treatment, often in pain or unable to work.
‘A&E departments also remain under extreme pressure as we head into summer, with over 2.2 million visitors in April and only 74 percent of people being seen within four hours.’
The proportion of patients in England who did not wait more than 62 days for an urgent referral for a suspected cancer or a consultant upgrade to their first definitive cancer treatment in March was 68.7 per cent, compared to 63.9 per cent in February . The goal is 85 percent.
GPs in England made 254,594 urgent cancer referrals in March, a slight increase from 253,025 in February but down year-on-year from 260,560 in March 2023.
Health Minister Victoria Atkins said: ‘NHS staff are working tirelessly to reduce the waiting list and today’s data shows the biggest six-month drop in more than a decade, excluding the pandemic.
‘This is a significant achievement in the context of record pressure and strikes, with an NHS analysis showing that without industrial action the list could have fallen by a further 430,000 since December 2022.
‘We have also achieved our target of ensuring that over 75 per cent of patients tested for cancer receive a diagnosis or ‘all clear’ within 28 days of referral, meaning patients are more likely to receive an ‘all clear’ or diagnosis.’
Some 309,300 people in England had been waiting more than 52 weeks for routine hospital treatment at the end of March, up from 305,050 at the end of February.
The government and NHS England have set an ambition to eliminate all waiting times of more than a year by March 2025.
At the end of March, there were 48,968 patients who had waited more than 65 weeks to start treatment, compared to 75,004 in February.
The target to eliminate all waiting times over 65 weeks has now been moved to September 2024, previously March 2024.
Wes Streeting, Labour’s shadow health secretary, said: ‘The Conservatives have failed to deliver on their promise to end waiting times over 65 weeks, and waiting lists are not continuing to fall.
‘Rishi Sunak has broken every promise he ever made to the NHS, leaving patients waiting in pain and discomfort for months.’
Daisy Cooper, Liberal Democrat health spokesperson, said: ‘Rishi Sunak would be completely misguided to think this is an NHS in recovery.
‘Far too many people are still waiting in pain, not knowing if they will get the treatment they need in time.
“It’s an unacceptable situation.”
Professor Sir Stephen Powis, National Medical Director of the NHS, said: ‘Today’s figures show how hard NHS staff are working to deliver the best possible care for patients, despite continued high demand and a difficult recovery path.’