On August 15, 2022, the Boston Globe published an op-ed written by PHAI president, Richard Daynard, PHAI executive director, Mark Gottlieb, and Northeastern University Law and Policy doctoral student, Harry Levant. The subject of the piece is the public health threat posed by sports betting with continuous action.
The piece is titled: Massachusetts makes a losing bet on gambling. A bill legalizing sports gambling was signed into law on August 10th in Massachusetts and the authors urge the regulatory agency, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, to lower the risk of addiction that sports gambling offering bettors constant action can pose.
Gambling Disorder is an addiction not unlike addictions to drugs, tobacco, and alcohol. Allowing legal betting on every play of every game of every sporting event is not a responsible way to regulate these products. The authors note that “rigorous enforcement of age restrictions, barring in-game betting, regulating advertising, and creating basic affordability checks can eliminate most of the problems that all too often turn fun into tragedy and despair.”
The op-ed can be viewed here.