

and I believe we all know how vital the NHS is to our society and why we should all be aware that unfortunately fraud does go on and how important it is to report it and put a stop to it.

The estimated amount lost to fraud within the NHS is approximately £1.27 billion pounds every year. This money, if not lost, could and should be spent on the important things, such as patients, on employees, on equipment on infrastructure etc.the list could go on. Like me, everybody has a story that links them to the NHS, whether it is care they received personally or for their parents, grandparents, children, friends etc.

It is often said fraud is a victimless crime, but this is totally untrue. Fraud, even if it’s against an organisation, will always end up affecting individuals. I started in the fraud world in October 2015 when I became a Compliance Officer at a local authority investigating fraudulent Council Tax and Housing Benefit claims. I gained my counter fraud accreditation and haven’t looked back since. My name is Daniel Higgs and, since November 2018, I have been the Local Counter Fraud Specialist (LCFS) at NELFT.
