The number of companies exploring various forms of private healthcare provision is rising, as the volume of people awaiting NHS treatment continues to grow, says consultancy group Broadstone.
The total number of people awaiting treatment rose by a further 70,000 in September and now stands at 7.07 million in England.
The pandemic has driven a sharp rise in backlog with the queue for treatment increasing by over 2.8 million since the start of Covid-19 and by over 1.2 million compared with September 2021.
Broadstone said the number of people waiting for help could have a knock-on impact on employee productivity and is prompting more companies to explore private healthcare options.
Emily Jones, director of healthcare at Broadstone, said: “More and more people are being driven out of work because of chronic illness, especially amongst the over 50s, while others are forced into extended absences while they wait for treatment. Businesses are struggling to recruit staff, while losing some of their most experienced employees due to ill-health, making attraction and retention of talent incredibly important.
“We are starting to see this translate into more companies exploring various forms of private healthcare provision for their workforce.
“Prevention of absence is key and then ensuring employees can access suitable healthcare quickly and efficiently protects businesses by driving a transformative change in absenteeism which improves productivity, as well as having a positive impact on wellbeing through the increased confidence of employees in their health and finances.”
