A&E waiting times in England have fallen to their worst level for a decade, figures out later are expected to show.
The data being released by NHS England covers the October to December quarter.
From the weekly statistics already available up to mid-December it is clear the four-hour target has almost certainly been missed.
Health Minister Norman Lamb admitted the NHS is "not meeting" those targets.
Performance is also on track to fall below the 94.1% mark recorded in the first three months of 2013.
It comes amid growing pressures on hospitals with a number declaring "major incidents" in recent days because of A&E pressures.
It means extra staff are brought in to help them cope and other steps, including cancelling non-emergency care, such as routine operations, can be taken.
Mr Lamb, a Lib Dem and minister for care services, told ITV: "We rightly have the toughest targets in the developed world. We are not meeting them."
He said the problem was partly down to longer life expectancy and people living with chronic conditions, adding: "We hear lots of reports from A&E departments of older people particularly turning up more ill than they have in the past."
But the BBC's assistant political editor Norman Smith reports that aides to the health secretary have dismissed claims that the current situation amounts to a crisis.
He says sources tell him that although conditions are "very tough", the vast majority of hospitals are still coping and seeing patients within four hours.
'Intolerable pressure'Dr Cliff Mann, of the College of Emergency Medicine, warned hospitals were reaching a "tipping point", with figures likely to show 20,000 more patients attending A&E units than this time last year.
He said part of the reason was the NHS non-emergency line 111 advising an increasing proportion of people to seek emergency care.
Dr Mann told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "My concern is the daily intolerable pressure is starting to have an effect on staff - they are mored likely to become sick, become unable to work, burn out and choose to go into other professions. That means it is not a sustainable situation".
A&E units in England have struggled since the end of the summer. The target demands that A&E units see 95% of patients in four hours, but since the end of August it has only been met once, according to the weekly figures that are published.
Overall, however, the NHS is judged on its performance over a quarter. This is what is being released on Tuesday. From the weekly data available from the start of October to the middle of December the current average for the quarter is running at just above 93%.
| Nation | Target | Latest performance |
|---|---|---|
|
England |
95% of patients in four hours |
October to December data due Tuesday |
|
Northern Ireland |
95% of patients in four hours |
80.5% in November |
|
Scotland |
98% of patients in four hours |
93.5% of patients in September |
|
Wales |
95% of patients in four hours |
83.8% of patients in November |
While that is below the target, it is still better than the performance being seen elsewhere in the UK.
England publishes weekly data and the others release it monthly or quarterly.
In Wales the data from November shows just 83.8% of patients were seen in time.
Northern Ireland is performing even worse - just over 80% of patients were seen within four hours in November.
Scotland has a slightly tougher waiting time target - 98% of patients should be seen in four hours - but in September 93.5% were.
Comparing the September figures for England and Scotland shows England was performing slightly better in that month.
'Cracks showing'It means according to latest data all parts of the UK are missing the A&E waiting time target.
Nigel Edwards, chief executive of the Nuffield Trust think-tank, said: "All the stops are being pulled out to meet waiting times targets at A&E departments, a focus that is quite explicitly being driven by the election. But the cracks are showing.
"There have been big spikes in the numbers of people needing to be admitted to hospital in an emergency for reasons that are not very clear.
"We may be reaching the point at which general practice, community services and social care can no longer contain the growing demand for their services."
How the UK has prepared for winter- In England an extra £700m has been set aside to help the NHS. This is paying for the equivalent of 1,000 extra doctors, 2,000 nurses and 2,000 community staff, including social workers and physios.
- Ministers in Scotland have announced a total of £28.2m for the NHS to increase capacity and improve the way patients are discharged during winter.
- In Wales the NHS has been given an extra £200m for this year. The money is for the whole health service, but ministers say it will help relieve pressure in the coming months.
- Ministers in Northern Ireland have released an additional £5m for both hospitals and the community, including ambulance liaison officers to speed up handovers between paramedics and A&E teams.
What has been your experience of A&E waiting times recently? You can get in touch by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk.
Please include a telephone number if you are willing to be contacted by a BBC journalist.
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