Despite decades of research and warnings by scientists, health inequality remains a societally virulent topic, and socioeconomic gradients such as a lack of formal education, low income, and unemployment continue to be important risk factors for a poorer health status in Austria. Studies have shown that people affected by poverty are significantly more likely to suffer from chronic diseases, have lower chances of recovery after acute illnesses, and a higher mortality risk. Health preservation is to be considered over the entire course of life, so we have to ask ourselves when and how Social Work intervention can have a supportive effect on health biographies. Against this background, this project uses problem-centred interviews and Grounded Theory to analyse the health biographies as well as the interpretative and behavioural patterns of people affected by poverty in the context of health. The objective is to explore mechanisms for health preservation and disease management in the lives of people affected by poverty and for a better understanding of possible contact points with and intervention possibilities by Social Work over the course of life.