Controversial plans to extend waiting times for Powys patients receiving treatment in England have been revived and approved by Powys Teaching Health Board.

Board members unanimously backed the move at a meeting today (Wednesday), reversing a decision made earlier this year to shelve the proposal following a public backlash.

The changes mean patients referred to hospitals in England will now face longer waits before receiving care, as the health board moves to commission treatment in line with NHS Wales waiting time targets. The new plans could see patients having to wait up to two years for certain procedures.

The decision comes as Powys Teaching Health Board grapples with severe financial pressures, forecasting a £38.4 million deficit for 2025/26.

The proposal was first put forward in January but was dropped after widespread opposition. However, with the board facing increasing financial strain, the plan returned to the table and was approved as part of its annual budget.

Ahead of the meeting, the health board sent a letter to politicians outlining the financial challenges and the difficult decisions being considered, including the extension of waiting times. The letter noted that the board had previously agreed in January not to implement these measures during the 2024/25 financial year but emphasised that the 2025/26 plan would need to be affordable.

The letter also detailed how the new waiting time rules, if approved, would come into effect from July. It clarified that patients would remain on waiting lists and would be contacted by hospitals when appointments become available.

The decision has sparked outrage among politicians, with Brecon, Radnor and Cwm Tawe MP David Chadwick calling it “an utterly disgraceful decision.”

“These plans should have been abandoned the first time they were proposed,” he said.

“It is utterly ridiculous that waiting times are going to be deliberately extended when we should be focused on cutting them.

“People in Mid Wales are fed up with drawing the short straw when it comes to public services, and residents pay their taxes like everyone else. They don’t choose to use hospitals in Shropshire and Herefordshire – it's something they are forced to do because we don’t have any major hospitals of our own in Powys.

“I will be raising it in Parliament at the earliest opportunity and joining the community in campaigning to reverse the decision made today."

MS for Brecon and Radnorshire James Evans condemned the health board's decision.

“Today’s decision by Powys Teaching Health Board is devastating for patients across Mid Wales,” he said.

“Far from tackling long waiting lists as they have promised, if the Welsh Labour Government do not step in now, they will be neglecting thousands of Welsh patients from rural communities.

“I repeat my plea to the Welsh Labour Government to fill this budget shortfall and protect Powys patients from this unacceptable decision.”

MS for Mid & West Wales and Welsh Lib Dem leader Jane Dodds also condemned the move, blaming the Welsh Government’s management of healthcare.

“Patients in Powys are now expected to wait longer because the Welsh Government is essentially saying Shropshire and Herefordshire are ‘too good’ at treating patients quickly and they cannot afford to match the quality of service,” she said.

"Labour promised to improve health care services in the General Election, yet they are actively forcing Powys Health Board to worsen the treatment of patients in Powys. It is appalling.

“The Welsh Government needs to get to grips with tackling the long waiting lists in the rest of Wales, not forcing Powys to go down to the lowest denominator.”