By John McClaughry

My friend of ‘many years, Bob Moffitt, formerly Assistant Secretary of Health and Human Services, recently offered some interesting news about the United Kingdom’s government run National Health Service.

“According to The Telegraph, one of Britain’s leading newspapers, the total number of patients waiting for medical care has soared to a record 6.6 million British citizens, almost 10 percent of the entire population. The newspaper’s Data Tracker contains some revealing numbers on the Western world’s oldest model of socialized medicine.

• Only 63 percent of British patients are being treated within 18 weeks; the government’s target was 92 percent.
• Only 72 percent of British patients seeking accident and emergency care are seen within four hours.
• Only 55 percent of patients are getting “face to face” appointments; pre-pandemic, it was 80 percent.

Since the onset of the pandemic in March of 2020, British waiting lists have increased by 2.4 million; 543,000 patients have had to wait more than four hours to receive accident and emergency care; 2300 patients have had to wait more than a month to start cancer treatment; and 407,000 patients have failed to get MRI examinations or colonoscopies within six weeks.

Why this shocking list of government health care failures? It’s because there isn’t ever enough money to give everybody as much free care as they think they deserve. Thus, you get underpaid providers and lengthy waiting times.

John McClaughry is vice president of the Ethan Allen Institute. Reprinted with permission from the Ethan Allen Institute Blog.