Women paying up to £11,000 for a hysterectomy amid NHS delays

Women in Britain are paying up to £11,154 for a hysterectomy in a private hospital, amid huge delays for NHS gynaecological care, research reveals.

The cost of undergoing the procedure privately has soared by 19% from £7,385 in 2021 to £8,795 last year, at a time when NHS waiting lists have risen sharply.

The disclosure has prompted claims independent sector healthcare providers are taking advantage of long waits for health service treatment by increasing their prices.

The number of women waiting for care in an NHS hospital for conditions such as fibroids and endometriosis more than doubled from 360,400 when Covid struck in 2020 to 749,329, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists has shown.

In November 584,607 women in England were on an NHS gynaecological waiting list, with 20,809 of them being on the list for more than a year, which led to a growing number of women going private to beat delays.

Dr Ranee Thakar, the RCOG’s president, said untreated conditions “have a devastating impact on almost every aspect of [women’s] lives, including their physical and mental health, and their ability to work and socialise.

“Long NHS waiting times are certainly a factor in why some women choose to have their surgery privately,” she added.

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Source: The Guardian, 24 January 2025