Eight-year delay for NHS gender care 'unacceptable'

Patients needing NHS gender care face a 42,000-long waiting list, with some having to wait as long as eight years, health secretary Wes Streeting has revealed.

- REBECCA THOMAS HEALTH CORRESPONDENT

Mr Streeting has vowed to address “unacceptable” waits for tens of thousands of people needing access to adult gender dysphoria services, The Independent can reveal.

At a speech for the NHS England LGBT+ Health annual conference in London on Monday, the health secretary will say: “Evidence shows trans people have higher rates of mental health conditions, including depression, when compared to the general population. Longer wait times only steepen this pain.

“Over 42,000 people are still waiting, often for years, for their first appointment at adult gender dysphoria clinics. That’s 42,000 people who are hurting, anxious and exhausted. This breaks my heart... 42,000 or more individuals should not be feeling invisible, misunderstood or unsupported.”

A new pilot scheme in southwest England will be given £125,000 to help patients on the waiting list by providing them with more information before appointments and mental health support. In this area, there are around 5,000 patients waiting up to eight years, according to the Department of Health and Social Care.