Jeremy Hunt says the NHS’ four-hour waiting target to see patients in A&E will in future ONLY apply to ‘urgent problems’
JEREMY HUNT warned A&E targets may have to be watered down if timewasters continue to clog up casualty wards.
He said a “rising tide” of patients had left emergency units “extremely fragile”.
Casualty wards are expected to treat 95 per cent of patients within four hours.
But the Health Secretary said the target was only ever intended to apply to urgent cases.
Around four in 10 A&E visitors do not need emergency treatment – and would be better seeing their GP, chemist or staying at home.
Mr Hunt said these patients should be directed elsewhere and suggested they may no longer be covered by the four hour pledge.
A&E waits were the longest on record at the end of December.
Data from the Royal College of Emergency Medicine show only 77.6 per cent were seen within four hour – the lowest levels since records began in 2004.
Two patients died last week after lengthy waits on trolleys in hospital corridors.
And dozens of swamped casualty wards struggled through their worst ever week, having to shut their doors a record number of times.
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But the Health Secretary warned up to 40 per cent of visits are non-urgent and hospitals “need the public’s help”.
He urged sick Brits to use hospitals responsibly.
The Health Secretary revealed the Tuesday after Christmas was the busiest ever day for casualty units.
Calling for a serious conversation, Mr Hunt told the Commons he was "committed” to the A&E target and wanted to "protect" it for the most serious cases
The Department of Health said there were no immediate plans to change the target.
Liberal Democrat health spokesman Norman Lamb accused the Government of “moving the goalposts”.
He said: “This is a slippery slope towards the downgrading of standards of care across the NHS.
"If the Health Secretary thinks it is acceptable for patients to be left waiting indefinitely in A&Es, or that this is a solution to the severe pressures facing the NHS, then he is sorely mistaken.”
And Chris Moulton, vice president of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, said it would be impossible to decide which A&;E patients should be covered by the target.
He said: "People have been asked to stay away from A&E for years but attendances continue to rise relentlessly." The Health Secretary has previously admitted taking his own children to A&E on a weekend because he didn’t want to wait for a GP appointment.
Mr Hunt’s comments come as hospital bosses warn of “absolutely bloody carnage” in casualty.
Nick Hulme, chief executive of Colchester and Ipswich hospital trusts, told the Health Service Journal: “It’s unprecedented. I’ve not seen anything like this in 37 years in the health service.”
But Mr Hunt claimed hospitals were performing "slightly better" than this time last year and denied British Red Cross claims of a "humanitarian crisis".
It came as Theresa May pledged to hold NHS bosses to task for their extra £1billion cash injection as she hit back at funding crisis claims yesterday.
In a keynote speech the PM said NHS leaders must explain how they allocate money when doling it out to local services.
She said: "We will hold the NHS leadership to account for the extra £1 billion we invested in mental health last year.
"We will make sure that mental illness gets the attention it deserves, in funding, research and technology investment.
"And we will be clear that when NHS leaders are redesigning services and developing new local solutions, mental health should get its full weighting."