Today, the frontrunner for NHS England’s next chairman revealed that he is a millionaire and uses private health care.
Ex-banker Richard Meddings — who was in charge of TSB for four years — revealed he went private last year when NHS waits hit record levels.
A grilling was conducted by members of the health select panel to determine his suitability for this role.
He revealed he first went to his NHS GP and was diagnosed late last year with deep vein thrombosis — a type of blood clot that usually develops in the leg. Mr Meddings was referred for scans on the health service — which can take three months — and ended up going private for treatment.
He will be the chair of NHSE and play an important role in Sajid Javid’s reorganization that aims to reduce waiting times, clear backlogs and improve record keeping.
When asked for an example of a time he received NHS treatment, he said he would have to look back at his teens.
Mister Meddings stated that he still trusts the health care system, but that he has access to private healthcare as part of his city job since his 20s.
According to reports, the Health Secretary had earmarked the ex-member of Treasury Board for this role due to the “financial problem” he could bring to the service.
Mr Javid was himself a successful banker for 18 years before coming into politics in 2009, working at Deutsche bank — where Mr Meddings was non executive director from 2015 to 2019.
His potential appointment was already controversial because of his lack of experience in healthcare or social care.
Richard Meddings (63), is No10’s favourite candidate for the position of NHS England Chair. He admitted today that he does not use private health care when he becomes ill.
NHS Surgery Waiting Lists are now at the highest level ever in England. More than 6million have been added since records started in November 2013.
As NHSE’s chair, Mr Meddings’s main duties will be to hold the organisation to account to deliver improvements in patients’ care, value for money and broader health reforms.
He comes with nearly 40 years of experience in the financial sector, which included leading TSB when it was hit by an IT meltdown that left almost two million people locked out of their accounts for weeks — a fiasco that saw it nicknamed the Truly Shambolic Bank.
Teach First, which is a not for profit organization coordinates teacher-training and seeks to improve the education standard in areas where it is least developed, also serves as his chair.
During questioning Mr Meddings admitted that he had no experience working in the social or health care sectors.
He admitted that he had not created a strategy to decrease health inequalities among regions.
He also admitted that he doesn’t know what he would do differently during the Covid pandemic.
M. Meddings answered the question “I have used private healthcare.”
“I believe that the industry of financial services has a number of aspects. I can think back to my 20s and remember when the private sector offered me health insurance.
After being diagnosed with unprovoked, DVT “late last year,” Mr Meddings stated that he was referred by the private sector to receive treatment.
He saw his NHS GP, and was referred for scans. According to Mr Meddings, he was then privately referred.
After being accused of not trusting the NHS, he insisted he has been a supporter of the NHS his whole life, citing his twin brother who works as a surgeon for the health service.
He said: ‘I don’t think that’s right, I absolutely trusted the NHS and I still do. It is something I believe in and strongly support.
After his GP reached him, Mr Meddings stated that he used the NHS to get a blood sample around Christmas.
He said that he knew about the health care system from his time with his parents.
NHS England’s current chair, Lord Prior of Brampton, a Conservative peer and former health minister who had previously chaired several NHS organisations, is to step down next year
Mr Meddings was the leader of TSB during an IT meltdown which left nearly 2 million people without access to their accounts for several weeks. The fiasco led to it being nicknamed “The Truly Shambolic Bank”
He was then forced to return to his “early teens” to provide another example of when he used NHS. After ‘failing’ to catch a cricket ball, his teeth were removed.
He stated:[I]He was in fact in the healthcare service for around 11 operations. Of those, two were in private industry, and eight to nine in government.
“And the final of those was cosmetic delivery to my private sector.
“So, I used health services, and I believe in the value of the service.
Labour MP Barbara Keeley explained that the only exception is when she wants to be referred directly to the private sectors.
NHS England’s current chair, Lord Prior of Brampton, a Conservative peer and former health minister, is to step down next year.
Ministers want his successor to drive through reforms, oversee spending and to improve the NHS’s use of digital technology.
NHS England has a £150billion annual budget and employs 1.2million staff, and the chairman’s role pays £63,000-a-year for three days a week.
He served as the chairperson of TSB up to earlier this year, and was also a non executive director at Treasury and Credit Suisse.
The chartered accountant was previously the finance chief at the Standard Chartered bank during the financial crash and served on the board of Deutsche Bank when it paid more than £5billion to settle US allegations of mis-selling mortgages.
He was appointed chairman of TSB in the months just before a failed computer upgrade that caused millions to lose access to their accounts, and also led 1,300 victims of fraud.
Mr Meddings apologised to customers for the debacle, which left TSB with a £370million bill for customer compensation and expenses. To answer questions, he was hauled in front of MPs.
He was a skilled crisis manager and was appointed to Credit Suisse’s Board of Directors shortly after the Swiss bank giant was accused in spying on its top executives.
MPs on the committee are currently coming to a decision on whether they will will recommend him for the NHS England job.
Before any formal agreement is reached, Mr Javid will review their report.