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Ministers have considered prioritizing NHS care for workers who have been sick for extended periods under proposals to address the slowdown in economic activity.
Amid concerns that the backlog is preventing people from returning to work, the government is considering ways to reduce the number of people who are not making money or looking for work by cutting the NHS waiting list. is under consideration.
One idea that came up was to add people who were employed to the NHS waiting list to reduce the number of people out of work waiting for surgery.
but I We understand that due to the NHS provision that care decisions must be based on clinical need rather than employment status, this is unlikely to happen.
Ministers said the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) and the Department of Health and Human Services (DHSC) are working together to explore other options to enhance the profile of job outcomes when considering treatment plans and medical approaches. I understand.
Since 2019, an increasing number of working-age adults have been excluded from the labor market due to long-term illness and are therefore economically inactive, contributing significantly to the shrinking workforce.
Recent data released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that the number of people unemployed due to illness will increase from about 2 million in spring 2019 to about 2.5 million in summer 2022. bottom.
The ONS said various factors were likely behind this, including an aging workforce, prolonged Covid and NHS backlogs.
The average waiting time from referral to NHS treatment in the UK has almost doubled, from about 7 weeks in April 2019 to about 14 weeks in August 2022.
The number of people on waiting lists for referral to treatment has also increased sharply since the initial lockdown was introduced, from about 4.4 million in February 2020 to 7 million in August 2022. increase.
Employment and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride is weighing the issue of economic sluggishness as she considers multiple policies on how to encourage more people to work.
Ideas being considered by policy makers include persuading seniors not to retire and reaching out to non-working partners of benefit claimants.
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last month, I The government has also revealed that it is considering radically changing the way childcare assistance is paid to Universal Credit claimants to increase the number of working parents.
The proposal Stride is considering would look at whether the child support system could be changed to prevent families from falling into arrears.
The government said it was already working to help disabled and sick people to work through various means.
These include increased support at job centers, improved advice to employers, and the introduction of partnerships with the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) and health systems on employment support for people with mental illness.
A DWP spokesperson said:
“As part of this effort, we are looking at plans to improve support for people with disabilities and long-term health conditions, while investing a further £22m to support employment for people over 50, We are expanding our Job Center offering Mid-Life MOT services and personalized support from Older Worker Champions.”
