We have known for many years that NHS does not provide value for money. Covid 19 has brought this into sharp focus. Surgeries are locked up and patients have no access.
If £120 billion was being spent on NHS to provide 24/7 for say 60 million people, then each individual is costing the government £2000 . For a comparative private insurance cover fee for one individual, young or old, you would get a much better service than what NHS gives ( even probably including emergency Ambulance cover ): it takes 2-3 hours persistently on the phone to book an appointment from first thing in the morning, the appointment itself can be 2 -3 weeks on, you can never see the same doctor, you cannot speak to the doctor in a hurry, a hundred more difficulties including referrals , getting medications easily etc Pre Covid and for years and years, stop ANYONE on the street, daytime, from Liverpool to Bristol to London, ask random people if you or their family member is genuinely sick or worried that they are really sick, they do NOT think even for a millisecond they should ring their GP or try to even contact the GP, its straight to the A and E, and this is despite the fact their GP may be an experienced doctor personally known to them but they prefer a probably a junior A and E doctor. This is not a fault of the doctors but the system is entirely flawed. Not only is the practice being paid for this in their yearly patient allowance, it adds unbearable strain on an already massively stretched A and E with extra cost to the government.
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