Overview
- Healthwatch England reports that about 14% of GP referrals to hospital care are lost, rejected or delayed between services.
- Among those affected, 75% say their health suffered and 70% only learned they were not on a waiting list after chasing the NHS themselves.
- Findings come from a nationally representative YouGov survey of 2,622 adults in England who were referred in the past year, completed in March.
- The failure rate has improved from 21% in 2023, yet delays are pushing 7% of patients to pay privately and 20% to seek help elsewhere in the NHS, heightening pressure and casting doubt on waiting list accuracy.
- The Department of Health and Social Care calls the situation unacceptable and points to Jess’s Rule, £1.1bn for general practice, recruitment of family doctors, advice-and-guidance for GPs and upgraded NHS App tracking.