A new study reveals, millions of patients are being forced to pay for private healthcare amid record waiting lists for the NHS and are having to reduce spending, raid savings and get into debt to provide funding.
According to a survey commissioned by Engage Britain, one in 10 percent of adults in the United Kingdom have turned to the private industry and independent healthcare in past 12 months. Of the adults, around 63 percent have faced long delays and could not access treatment on the NHS England.
The latest figures from NHS England show the number of people in the United Kingdom waiting for routine hospital treatments has increased to a record 6.8 million. Of those gone private, around 46 percent people were forced to decrease their spending in other areas, affecting savings they have kept for another purpose, and got into financial debt to pay for it.
Mariam Levin, health and care programme director at Engage Britain, said while NHS England still unites many of its healthcare workers with a feeling of pride, it is clear that more and more people will feel forced to adopt private treatment.
