Healthcare: How Long Do Patients Have To Wait?

According to a recent study by the Consumer Choice Center, the average wait for a GP appointment in the United States in 2023 was around three weeks, two to ten times longer than in Europe. For example, in that year, the average waiting time for a medical consultation was two days in Switzerland, six days in France and ten days in the United Kingdom and Italy.

As the following chart also shows, waiting times for non-emergency surgeries also varied widely from one country to another. In 2023, the average waiting time was lowest in the U.S. and Switzerland (28 days), while it was highest in Spain (77 days) and France (63 days).