Recent data shows that there has been a significant increase in the number of individuals opting for private healthcare.
A record-breaking 272,000 people have chosen to pay for routine surgeries, including procedures like cataract removal and hip replacements, as well as utilising private hospitals for diagnostic appointments.
This substantial rise of 262,000 users compared to last year can be attributed to persistently long NHS waiting lists which have been exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic. As a result, more individuals are seeking alternatives in the private healthcare sector.
The Private Healthcare Information Network (PHIN) reported that private hospitals experienced a remarkable surge in both inpatient and day patient treatments in 2022, reaching a staggering total of 820,000.
A further 547,000 used a form of private medical insurance policy to receive treatment which is the highest on record since 2019.
Ian Gargan, PHIN’s chief executive, said “long NHS waiting lists and uncertainty around how long you’ll be waiting” were driving the surge in private healthcare. “For some people, paying for their own treatment is more cost-effective than not being able to work while they await a new knee or hip replacement, for instance.”
The top five most common procedures carried out privately last year included: cataract surgery (76,000), chemotherapy (66,000), upper gastrointestinal diagnostic tests (38,000), colonoscopies to test for bowel cancer (31,000) and hip replacements (30,000).
Keep Our NHS Public said it was “shameful” that so many people have had no choice but to go private as a result of the government neglecting the NHS.
Dr John Puntis, the group co-chair, commented: “It should come as no surprise that when the government has run the NHS down to a state of near-collapse, more people are opting to go private.
“Private healthcare providers are making hay as those people who can afford health insurance or scrape the necessary funds together for treatment choose the independent sector. It is absolutely shameful that in 2023, in the sixth richest world economy, we can’t diagnose and treat life-threatening illnesses such as cancer in a timely fashion.”
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