Oral surgery covers wisdom teeth, jaw problems and other operations in the mouth. At the end of June 2026, 292,744 people in England were waiting for oral surgery treatment. Just 54% were seen within the 18-week target, and 7,352 had already waited more than a year — the sort of queue private treatment can skip for anything you are not already being treated for.
Where oral surgery waits are worst
| NHS trust | People waiting | Seen within 18 weeks | Waiting over a year |
|---|---|---|---|
| East Kent Hospitals University | 4,589 | 34% | 315 |
| Mid and South Essex | 7,057 | 35% | 1,018 |
| East and North Hertfordshire Teaching | 962 | 37% | 63 |
| Worcestershire Acute Hospitals | 3,897 | 37% | 159 |
| George Eliot Hospital | 1,139 | 41% | 8 |
| Cambridge University Hospitals | 3,814 | 41% | 159 |
| University Hospitals Sussex | 8,528 | 42% | 709 |
| Frimley Health | 2,795 | 42% | 133 |
| Portsmouth Hospitals University | 4,304 | 43% | 405 |
| The Royal Wolverhampton | 4,712 | 43% | 311 |
| Bedfordshire Hospitals | 6,886 | 43% | 173 |
| Great Western Hospitals | 3,068 | 44% | 95 |
The 18-week target is the point at which the NHS says treatment should have started. In the trusts above, most oral surgery patients had already waited longer.
Skip the queue with private treatment
Nobody wants to spend months on an oral surgery waiting list. Private cover can have you seen by a consultant in days, not months. It will not pay for a condition you are already waiting on, so arrange it before a problem starts — compare cover, see if it is worth it, or get a free quote.
Frequently asked questions
What does private oral surgery cost? Private hospitals publish self-pay prices, and cover pays for treatment arranged before symptoms begin.
Can I switch to private care once I am on the NHS list? You can pay privately at any time, but insurance will not cover a condition you are already waiting to have treated — that is why cover is worth arranging while you are well.
Source: NHS England Referral to Treatment (RTT) and Diagnostics (DM01) waiting-times statistics, June 2026; self-pay figures from UK private hospitals’ own published price lists. Waiting-list figures change monthly.