Gambling Addiciton

Gambling addiction is an issue found in numerous areas where gambling is legal. People who are addicted to gambling, also know as problem gamblers, face many health risks including depression, suicidal thoughts, loss of sleep, loss of appetite, migraine and anxiety in addition to marriage breakdown, problems at work and bankruptcy (9). About 2 percent of adults are thought to be problem gamblers (1). In today’s society this costly addiction is not often considered to be a common problem among those who gamble. Only a small amount of states in the U.S. give enough attention toward this rising problem of people that are sometimes even willing to commit crimes just to aid their addiction. In the past our government has sought out a few solutions that help those who have developed an addiction and prevent a further increase in the number of people becoming addicted. Personally, my outlook on the problem is that it needs a better solution. I think that a higher funding to gambling addiction clinics, more ordinance and restriction laws, and more prevention and awareness programs should bee brought into consideration in order to lower the amount of people who become addict to gambling.

Providing higher funds to gambling addiction clinics is one solution to the problem of gambling addiction. Clinics are important because they offer services to addicted people to help them get over their addiction. Six months after clinical treatment, 80 percent of people say they either don’t gamble or gamble much less (1). Sufficient amounts of free clinics is the key to decreasing the number of problem gamblers. “For the first time, we don’t have enough money to meet the growing demand of free clinics,” said Jeffrey Marotta, a clinical psychologists who manages problem gambling services for the Oregon Department of Human Services (1). In Washington, a state-funded treatment program for problem gamblers was started in 2002, but it ran out of money the next year (1). It is obvious that same states have a need for more clinics. Providing higher funding to create more clinics is the issue.

So, where do we get the money needed to provide free clinics? I think it should come straight from the source of the problem. States that have legalized gambling use gambling as a way to generate additional revenue through fees and taxes (6). The extra revenue usually goes toward helping economic problems in each state. In Canada, gambling brought in about $6 billion in 2002, up from $1.7 billion in 1992, in extra revenue for the Canadian government (10). I think that a sufficient amount of all the extra revenue in each state should be spent on clinics since gambling addiction is an economic problem that comes directly from legalized gambling. The extra revenue could be the answer to having enough clinics to meet the rising need.

Another solution to the problem of gambling addiction is more ordinance and restriction laws. These laws regulate every aspect that limits gambling. Without enough of them a state’s gambling industry could increase quickly bringing a rise of gambling addiction rate along with it.

Ordinance laws are state laws that protect areas and buildings from having gambling machines. Without enough ordinance laws, it can be legal to place slot machines around public facilities, such as, schools and churches. This allows easy access to children. Almost 1 percent of the population has serious gambling problems, but the rate is twice as high in adolescents (9). Experts in adolescent compulsive behavior say between 14 and 15 percent of all adolescents who gamble by playing poker will eventually become compulsive gamblers (11). When children have access to gambling machines it increases their chance of developing a gambling addiction in their future. Therefore, I think that every state that has legalized gambling should also have good ordinance laws to keep gambling out of places where children can have easy access.

Restriction law are state laws that set limits and high taxes on areas to keep gambling below a reasonable level. Age limits, prohibited gambling at schools, and restrictions