Dhiraj Gupta (Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital, Liverpool, UK) discusses NHS England’s commissioning through evaluation for left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO). This programme is designed to enable a limited number of patients to receive LAAO, a procedure that is not routinely funded by the NHS in England. Gupta raises concerns about the number of patients that will be left without treatment in the upcoming months as the programme is due to enter its “assessment phase”, which means no more funding will be given until NHS England decides whether or not the procedure becomes routinely funded. The interview took place at the Heart Rhythm Congress (9‒12 October, Birmingham, UK).
