The recent social media regarding gambling has been permeating our news, particularly with some of the issues that have been surfaced in the NBA and other sports betting. Some of the ways sports betting has been utilized to engage users illegally has been exposed. The amount of advertising on sports events has increased exponentially and wagers now have access 24/7 to place bets on almost any sports variables.
A recent study in JAMA Internal Medicine and led by researchers from the University of California, San Diego Qualcomm Institute and School of Medicine has noted a dramatic increase in sports betting and gambling addiction since the landmark Murphy vs. NCAA decision paved the way for states to legalize sports betting. Since that decision, 38 states have legalized sports betting and billions of wagers have utilized this source of gambling.
The number of sports wagers skyrocketed from 4.9 billion in 2017 to 121.1 billion in 2023 with 94% of wagers placed online. My own state of Pennsylvania is ranked the 4th largest gambling addiction state in our country. Pennsylvania wagers spent $6.1 billion last year which created $2.7 billion in state revenue. Sports betting has created substantial income for states through taxes on gambling.
As we know with any other addiction, the addiction to gambling can become life-dominating. It not only impacts the gambler but also those who are connected to the gambler including friends, spouses and their children. It can cause havoc in a family since there is accompanying debt, financial stress and conflict, sometimes leading to divorce if untreated.
The effects of gambling to the health and well-being of a family are emotional, physical and behavioral. For an intimate partner it creates anger, discontent, depression, anxiety, headaches, hypertension and other addictions such as drinking, drug use and other unhealthy coping mechanisms. For children it creates confusion, anxiety, guilt, depression, panic, low academic performance and other types of addictions. The trauma of a parent with an on-going addiction can create a lifetime of needed recovery for their entire family.
What is intended to be simple gaming and betting is quickly becoming a public health problem for our country. In the midst of an already rising mental health crisis, we now have a well-orchestrated and advertised system of sports betting that can create major dysfunction in our society that requires a whole new level of therapy and treatment for gamblers and their families.
As has been discussed, we recognize that the funding for mental health services such as addictions is currently not adequate. It appears that this form of gambling is exponentially growing. With continued threats to the funding for our national and regional systems of care, this can create significant disparity between the need and the ability to provide the therapeutic support and treatment for this growing trend of traumatic impact. For those in our sphere of influence who are addicted to sports betting, it is a priority that they be warned, seek help and find the support they need before the consequences become life-devastating!
Gerry Vassar
President/CEO
