No authorisation number provided

We have been on our current hospital plan at Discovery since 1 July 2020, Before this we have been on another discovery plan for many years. We did skip 3 months during the covid months, hence the change to a hospital plan. So now my hubby urgently needs an op for a snapped off tendon on the 23rd November. However Discovery can't give us an authorisation number, they apparently need 8 days to approve this (and can give no guarantee that it will be approved). We are at a hospital and doctor in their network. This is a disaster for us. My husband is walking around dragging his foot. And we have no guarantee he will be helped. Wondering why we have medical..