With health insurance you do not need to wait very long to have diagnostic treatments or operations. You see your GP, they refer you and usually within a few days you can get in to see a specialist. With the NHS however, this is not the case. Waiting lists have been an issue since the NHS started. Recently it was thought that the conservatives would push to remove the national targets for maximum waiting times but after a review last year the targets are now here to stay.
Currently the waiting time targets are as follows:
- 2 weeks wait to see a specialist if cancer is suspected
- 31 day wait from diagnosis to treatment
- 62 day wait from referral to treatment
The NHS waiting time figures show that the targets are having a positive effect with an average success rate of over 90%. The labour government had been working on these targets for a number of years with increasing success as time went on.
The main reason for the targets is to help save more lives. As with most diseases the earlier it is caught the better the chances of recovery. This may not just be a physiological factor but a psychological one too. If a patient has less stress their chances of a good may recovery improve.
Cancer death rates
In England more than 250,000 people are diagnosed with cancer every year. 130,000 die from the disease. The UK are very behind other European countries when it comes to cancer survival rates. The aim of the government is to save a further 5,000 lives a year by 2014/15. This would bring us more inline with the figures available from other countries.
Big Cancer Plans
Keeping the current waiting time targets is only part of the government’s plan to improve cancer survival rates. Other initiatives include:
• Encouraging people to come forward if they have concerns about their health
• Improved screening
• Better access to new cancer drugs
Cancer health insurance is another option for people but if this is one of your concerns it is very important to get the right cover for you and your family. Having the right questions to ask when you are shopping around for the right cover is very important.