Patients in England’s most deprived areas wait longer for NHS treatment, data reveals

Data also found the east and south-west of England were regions with the largest ethnicity gap for people waiting more than a year to begin hospital treatment. Photograph: Jeff Moore/PA

Patients from the most deprived areas of England face longer waits for NHS treatment and make up a higher proportion of those waiting for care, according to figures.

Data released by NHS England on Thursday provides a breakdown of the health service’s waiting lists by ethnicity and deprivation levels for the first time. It shows that people in the most deprived areas of England and people from ethnic minority backgrounds make up a disproportionate and growing proportion of those waiting for NHS treatment.