Mid Sussex MP and Lib Dems call for 'rescue plan for local health services' after figures reveal 12-hour A&E delays
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The office of MP Alison Bennett said statistics have been released recently by NHS England. They said these show the number of people who waited more than 12 hours from arriving at A&E to being admitted, transferred or discharged in October 2024.
They pointed out that in West Sussex, 2,945 people waiting to be seen ‘did so for over 12 hours – 16 per cent of all those attending A&E’.
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Lib Dem spokesperson for Care and Carers Alison Bennett said: “I’m deeply concerned by the number of people facing long, dangerous delays in A&E here in Mid Sussex. Timely care can save lives, but too many are waiting too long.
“The previous Conservative Government ran our NHS into the ground, decimating emergency services up and down the country. The new Government must urgently get a grip of this crisis and bring forward a plan to rescue our struggling health services. They must start by exempting GPs, care homes, and other health and care providers from their NI tax hike, which risks making this crisis even worse.”
The Royal College of Medicine has warned that delays to accessing care or being admitted to hospital, can increase a patient’s risk of harm and death, even after they have been discharged from emergency services.
Sussex’s Liberal Democrats are now calling for a rescue plan for local health services. This would include immediately exempting GPs and care providers from the National Insurance Contributions (NIC) increase to reduce pressure on hospitals and ambulance services.
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Hide AdA Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “This government inherited a broken NHS where an annual winter crisis had become the norm. It will take time to turn things around but our action to quickly end the junior doctors strike means for the first time in three years NHS leaders are planning for winter rather than preparing for strikes. And the Chancellor recently announced a near £26 billion boost for the NHS over this year and next. Longer-term, through our 10 Year Health Plan, we will build an NHS that is fit for the future and delivers for patients all year round.”