Bailey’s Part In Meredith’s Hearing On Grey’s Anatomy May Not Be As Bad As You Think

After weeks of waiting to see if Ellen Pompeo's character Meredith will lose her license on Grey's Anatomy, viewers will get the answers they seek next week. Meredith will face the board for their decision, with a handful of her fellow doctors speaking on her behalf. But Miranda Bailey (Chandra Wilson) says something at Meredith's trial too, according to the Grey's Anatomy episode 8 promo that aired on Nov. 7, and she could ruin Meredith's chance to return to the medical field.

Bailey is the one who fired Meredith after her insurance fraud came to light. She also fired Alex Karev (Justin Chambers) and Richard Webber (James Pickens Jr.) just for knowing about and not reporting the fraud. Bailey also fired Dr. Qadri when she stood up for Meredith. Bailey is not Meredith's biggest fan right now, especially after Meredith accidentally wrote a takedown piece about Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital. So fans should definitely be worried that Bailey wants to speak at Meredith's court hearing.

In the promo, Richard is asked by the board, "Were you aware Dr. Grey had committed insurance fraud?" and it seems like he lies to protect Meredith. In another scene, Bailey chastises him. "You flat out lied," she says, an angry look on her face. She also is shown frowning while other doctors speak on behalf of Meredith. The voiceover in the promo then ominously says, "How far will they go to protect one of their own?" But when Bailey says at the end of the promo, "Sorry, your Honor. I have something more to say," it seems ominous. The "something more" she has to say could be her tattling on Richard for lying — which would hurt his career too. It could also be Bailey stating that she doesn't think Meredith should return to work as a doctor. Or... it could potentially be Bailey standing up for her.

Bailey was put in a hard position when Meredith committed fraud because, as chief of the hospital, Bailey really couldn't look past that. It was illegal and it would have made the hospital look bad to keep Meredith around. It could have also cost Bailey her job if the authorities thought she was colluding with Meredith too by not firing her. But Bailey raised Meredith from a little baby intern. She had to have hated firing Meredith and her mentor Richard and her talented attending Alex. Bailey's suffered for months now without some of her best surgeons. She knows how good Meredith is, and she also has to understand where Meredith came from when she committed the fraud.

Meredith broke the law to help a sick child — and Bailey herself has committed insurance fraud before in the name of helping a patient. In season five, she asked Alex to turn the operating room clock back when she learned that a patient's insurance was expiring at midnight.

Maybe Bailey will surprise us all and stand up for Meredith and be the reason why she gets to keep her license. However, if Bailey does say something that dooms Meredith's license status, it seems like Meredith will figure out how to move on regardless. The synopsis for the following episode (airing Nov. 21) says, "Meredith moves forward with her life after facing the medical board."

In a recent episode, Meredith made it seem like she was open to exploring other ways of helping people if she couldn't be a doctor again, perhaps by advocating for people who fall through the healthcare or justice system cracks. There is life out there for Meredith even if she can't be a doctor. But it sure would be devastating if Bailey was the one who doomed her medical career for good. Hopefully Bailey have a change of heart about Meredith and speak on her behalf next week, otherwise fans may have a hard time reckoning with Bailey's choices moving forward.