NHS crisis ‘will leave six million people on operation waiting lists’, private health firms warn 

Six million people will be left waiting for crucial operations such as hip replacements and cataract surgery by 2024 because NHS hospitals cannot cope with rising demand, it was claimed last night.

The number of people on waiting lists for planned treatment in England will jump by 30 per cent from the current 4.6 million, according to a new forecast from a collection of private health firms.

Lists for elective surgery will swell as increasing numbers of seriously ill patients take up beds on general wards when they are moved from packed A&Es, said David Hare, chief executive of the Independent Healthcare Providers Network.

At the same time, demand for surgical procedures is growing as the population gets older.

Mr Hare said as waiting lists expand, the proportion of people forced to wait longer than the benchmark 18 weeks will more than double to 19 per cent.

But the NHS said: ‘As we get more funding and are able to increase beds and nurses, waiting lists will come down.’

Six million people will be left waiting for crucial operations such as hip replacements and cataract surgery by 2024 because NHS hospitals cannot cope with rising demand, it was claimed last night [File photo]