The gap in heart disease death rates for over-65s in the richest and poorest areas of the country has grown since the 1980s, new figures show.
Scientists at Imperial College London looked at death rates for men and women between the ages of 30 and 64 and in the over-65 age group.
They found that deaths from heart and circulatory disease fell in most parts of England between 1982 and 2006.
But the decline among over-65s was noticeably smaller in the most deprived areas, resulting in a wider gap between rich and poor people.
Researcher Dr Perviz Asaria, whose findings are published in the International Journal of Epidemiology, said: 'The extraordinary pressure on the NHS to make savings might jeopardise health services, including the crucial role of GPs, in poor communities.
'And if people's jobs are less stable, they may be forced to change their diet, or drink and smoke more.'
Mubeen Bhutta, policy manager at the British Heart Foundation, observed that the overall improvement in heart disease death rates 'has clearly not benefitted everyone equally'.
The expert said that eradicating inequalities must be at the heart of the government's new cardiovascular disease strategy, which is due to be published over the winter.