Medical crowdfunders for Britons surge amid record NHS waiting lists

Appeals to pay for private care linked to waiting lists or cost of living crisis have soared since Covid pandemic

The number of Britons crowdfunding for private medical care has soared since the Covid-19 pandemic, as NHS waiting lists continue to reach record lengths.

Figures provided to the Guardian by GoFundMe, a website that helps people raise money, show 84% more medical crowdfunders mentioning waits" or waiting lists" were launched this March than in January 2019, before the pandemic.

The number of medical campaigns containing the words go private" or privately" had also doubled.