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<\/p>\nCOVID pressure on the NHS is as bad as January's second peak with hospital admissions rising, the chief has warned.<\/p>\n
He said hospitals are set to face their biggest challenge yet, with cases still high and the country now unlocked.<\/p>\n
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Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers, told the Independent: \u201cMany NHS chief executives believe the next phase of our fight against Covid-19 is likely to be the hardest yet given the scale and breadth of pressures they face. <\/p>\n
"They are clear that, now more than ever, the NHS must get the funding it needs to win that fight.<\/p>\n
\u201cTrust leaders have strongly welcomed the financial support they\u2019ve received over the last 18 months. It\u2019s been crucial to coping with Covid-19.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut the government is currently stressing the need to repair the public finances and some are arguing that NHS funding can \u2018return to normal\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is the task of NHS leaders to juggle these competing priorities and provide the best possible care to the greatest number of people.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut they need maximum support from government. And they\u2019re worried that, as the NHS budget is set for the second half of the year, that support won\u2019t arrive. <\/p>\n
"The government is stressing the need to restore public finances. But the NHS can\u2019t meet the pressures it faces without the right funding.\u201d<\/p>\n
It comes amid reports over half of the Covid patients in hospital tested positive after being admitted. <\/p>\n
\ud83d\udd35<\/strong> Read our coronavirus live blog\u00a0for the latest updates<\/p>\n Leaked data suggests the majority of patients classed as being hospitalised with Covid-19 were initially admitted for different ailments.<\/p>\n Figures show patients were eventually diagnosed with Covid through routine testing that is required for everyone admitted to the hospital.<\/p>\n The data, covering all NHS trusts in England, suggests that as of last Thursday, just 44 per cent of Covid patients had tested positive by the time they were admitted.<\/p>\n The majority of cases were not detected until the standard Covid tests were carried out.<\/p>\n Fifty six per cent of Covid hospitalisations fell into this category, the data suggests.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n NHS leaders have warned a mix of pressures in hospitals have led to many being short of thousands of beds.<\/p>\n And a combination of increased infections hitting staff and the effects of the hot weather have reportedly heaped more pressure on hospitals.<\/p>\n 999 calls were claimed to be going unanswered for minutes at a time due to a lack of call handlers.<\/p>\n Last week at least seven out of ten England ambulance service trusts are thought to be reporting "extreme pressure" – often referred to as "black alert" incidences.<\/p>\n It is the most serious of the Operations Pressure Escalation Levels – used to measure stress, demand and pressure on the NHS.<\/p>\n Surgeries have been cancelled or delayed at a number of hospitals around the country, as staff isolate after being pinged.<\/p>\n And many trusts are rejigging their wards once again to make space for the growing number of Covid patients.<\/p>\n It comes as cases have dropped in the UK for the sixth day running in a positive sign, but experts have warned the effect of Freedom Day is still to come.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/DD-COMP-NEW-UK-COVID-CASES-AND-DEATHS-JULY-26.jpg\")
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