Research by the Liberal Democrats showed 25% of people who did not call for an ambulance instead called for a taxi, with one in five (18%) walking to A&E and 17% choosing to stay at home.
Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey said: ‘The crisis in the NHS must be tackled head on without delay. From crumbling hospitals to sky-high waiting lists, the new Government must make fixing the health service their top priority. Patients will pay the price if they fail.'
The majority (57%) of adults who needed to call for an ambulance said they drove themselves or asked a family member to drive them.
In addition, almost half (49%) said they were worried they would face a 12-hour wait in A&E or would not be able to access NHS treatment, with 45% worried they won't be able to see their GP and 38% fearing an ambulance won't arrive at all in the event of a winter crisis.
The Lib Dems announcement came as Davey today visited North Devon District Hospital, which is one of 25 hospitals from the New Hospital Programme which the Government has failed to guarantee funding for.
The Lib Dems are calling for additional funding to fix ageing hospitals and a 10-year plan to invest in hospitals and the primary care estate, as well as a new taskforce to ‘make the NHS winterproof' to put an end to the annual winter crises in the health service.
Sir Julian Hartley, chief executive, NHS Providers, said: ‘Despite their best efforts stretched teams face an uphill battle as demand keeps outstripping available resources and staff. Adequate long-term investment in ambulance services is needed alongside sustained efforts to recruit, train and retain staff.'
Rory Deighton, acute director at the NHS Confederation, said: ‘This latest survey also shows how concerned people are about the state of the NHS this winter. We have called on the chancellor to use her budget to provide some immediate support to the NHS and social care ahead of winter or risk the service falling into yet another crisis. Health systems are already having to scale back staff and service levels to meet tight financial targets, so without support there is a real risk patients will be left facing even longer waits for ambulances or care.'
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: ‘We inherited a broken NHS and it is appalling that some patients fear they cannot rely on our ambulance services when they need them.
‘It is our mission to get the health service back on its feet and build an NHS fit for the future. That's why we are committed to creating a 10-Year Health Plan that includes clear steps to bring waits down.
‘We will also fix primary care services to treat patients so fewer need to go to A&E, starting by hiring an extra 1,000 GPs with £82m in extra funding.'
