HEART disease, diabetes and teenage pregnancy are not being tackled in some of Bolton’s poorest areas because of a shortage of cash, it has been claimed.

Around 20 GPs in the most deprived wards, who look after a higher proportion of patients with long-term illnesses, have been underfunded by a total of £300,000 this year. But many surgeries in more affluent areas have a surplus of cash, figures from Bolton Primary Care Trust show.

Now, a spokesman for GPs has claimed the lack of money means doctors are unable to tackle preventable conditions, such as alcohol problems and teenage pregnancy. Dr Kailash Chand, of the British Medical Association, who represents family doctors in Bolton, called for an end to the “postcode lottery” and a better way of funding GPs.

He said: “It affects the poorer areas a lot. We have been saying for years that there is an inequality in the funding. Unfortunately, it is the patients who suffer. All GPs should have equal and fair funding.

“The direct effect is that these GPs have little or no money to spend on tackling preventable conditions. These are things like diabetes, heart disease, stroke, alcohol problems and teenage pregnancy.”