Study researches extent of U.S. gambling problem

The Associated Press

WASHINGTON -- More than 5 million Americans are pathological or problem gamblers, and another 15 million are at risk of becoming just like them, a study has concluded.

The study conducted for the National Gambling Impact Study Commission found that 20 million Americans have or could develop gambling problems, but said the economic impact of that is "relatively small." A second report, also released Thursday as the commission began two days of meetings in Washington, estimated that 1.8 million American adults and up to 1.1 million American adolescents age 12 through 17 engage in severe "pathological" gambling each year. The commission has three months to finish a wide-ranging report on gambling for Congress. The extent of compulsive gambling in the country is just one of several open issues. Gambling addiction is the most contentious topic. Frank J. Fahrenkopf Jr., president of the American Gaming Association, said an earlier draft of the report was retooled to exaggerate the dangers of gambling through sensational language and changes in conclusions. Still, he noted that the report "confirms that the economic and social benefits of gaming far outweigh the costs to society of pathological and problem gambling." Some commission members were troubled by the report's finding that the economic cost of problem gambling is "relatively small" -- about $5 billion a year in legal fees for divorce, court and jail costs for arrests, lost wages and bankruptcy. That compares with $72 billion for smoking, $166 billion for alcohol abuse and $71 billion for motor vehicle crashes, the report said. James Dobson, president of Focus on the Family and the panel's most outspoken opponent of gambling, wondered how to calculate the costs of child abuse or spousal abuse committed by a gambling addict. Combining telephone surveys with interviews at casinos, the report concluded that people are about twice as likely to be problem or pathological gamblers if a casino is within 50 miles of their home. The second study, by the National Research Council, says pathological gamblers are far more likely to commit crimes, run up large debts, damage relationships and kill themselves. Commission member Richard C. Leone, president of the Twentieth Century Fund and a former state treasurer of New Jersey, said he worries that the nation is becoming one big compulsive gambler, with states battling it out to see who can capture the most dollars through casinos, lotteries, video poker and other outlets. "Personally, I view it as a kind of national psychosis," he said.

Copyright 1999
Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights Reserved.