Unemployment: Chronic Illnesses
(asked on 23rd April 2024) - View Source
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will make a comparative estimate of the number of people who were economically inactive and waiting for NHS treatment by (a) nation and (b) region as of (i) 23 April 2010 and (ii) 23 April 2024.
The information available on the number of people who were economically inactive and waiting for NHS treatment is given below.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has published waiting times for a hospital appointment, test or to start receiving treatment through the NHS for those who are economically inactive as part of the Opinions and Lifestyles Survey. This data is available for Great Britain and is not available at lower-level geographies and the earliest available data is for 22 November to 18 December 2022 therefore a comparison with 2010 at a national and regional level cannot be made.
The latest Opinions and Lifestyle Survey data shows that the number of economically inactive adults aged 16 years and over in Great Britain is 6.9 million, excluding those who are retired (18 October 2023 to 1 January 2024). Economically inactive adults will, for example, include adults who are studying, have caring responsibilities or are long-term sick. Of this population, between 2.1 million (30%) and 2.6 million (38%) are currently waiting for a hospital appointment, test, or to start receiving medical treatment through the NHS.