NHS waiting list up to 2026 high

List stands at 7.28m

Cameron Roberts
clock • 2 min read

The NHS waiting list grew by 60,000 patients in May 2026, according to data from NHS England.

The number of patients awaiting treatment rose to 7.28m in May this year, up from 7.22m in the previous month. This marks the second month that the list has seen a jump, after four successive months of declining numbers, bottoming out at 7.01m patients in March this year. Dawn Prescott, head of healthcare proposition, The Exeter, said: "Today's increase is a reminder of how difficult it is to bring down the backlog while demand continues to outstrip capacity across the health service. "The government's progress in reducing the longest waits is encouraging, but rebuilding public con...

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