Around four in 10 adults are struggling to secure a GP appointment, according to official data.
According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), 39% of UK adults who tried to contact a GP practice to make an appointment for themselves or someone else in the last month found it very difficult or difficult.
That compared to 44% of adults who found it easy or very easy.
The data covered the period 12 to 23 July 2023.
Cost of living
When asked about the important issues affecting the UK today, the most commonly reported issues continue to be the cost of living (92%), the NHS (85%), the economy (78%), climate change and the environment (62%) and housing (55%).
Among those currently paying rent or a mortgage, more than four in 10 (45%) reported that their rent or mortgage payments had gone up in the past six months.
And of those who are currently paying rent or a mortgage, four in 10 (40%) reported finding it very or somewhat difficult to afford their payments. That is an increase from around three in 10 (31%) in July 2022.
Around six in 10 (59%) adults reported that their cost of living had increased, compared with a month ago. But this proportion appeared to have significantly decreased compared to early April 2023, when it stood at 76%.
When asked about what they are doing to mitigate the increases in the cost of living, around two-thirds (67%) said they were spending less on non-essentials, over half (53%) were shopping around more, and 46% were using less fuel such as gas or electricity in their homes.
