Pennsylvania’s problem-gambling services pages list outpatient treatment, case management and telehealth for people and families affected by problem gambling. The pages also say people can search by county for providers, and that low-cost or no-cost treatment is available through DDAP for people with a gambling addiction and their family members.
The state’s problem-gambling services page says the Gambling Helpline is free, confidential and available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, all year. Help can be reached by phone, text message or online chat, and the self-exclusion program allows people to ask to be barred from legalized gaming in casinos and offsite venues, online, at video gaming terminal establishments and in fantasy contests.
Pennsylvania also kicked off a public-awareness push. DDAP Secretary Dr. Latika Davis-Jones joined the Pennsylvania Lottery, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, the Council on Compulsive Gambling of Pennsylvania and David Yeager, a Pennsylvanian in long-term recovery, to kick off March as National Problem Gambling Awareness Month. The release said the campaign, now in its 22nd year, is meant to raise awareness of treatment and recovery services and encourage health care providers to screen people for problem gambling.
The release listed warning signs that can point to trouble, including strained relationships, borrowing money to gamble, missing work, school or other obligations, hiding or lying about gambling, using gambling as an escape and feeling unable to stop. Josh Ercole, the council’s executive director, said being aware of warning signs and knowing where to turn for assistance in Pennsylvania is vital. Yeager said many people do not realise gambling is a treatable addiction until severe damage is done.
The Lottery’s executive director, Drew Svitko, said the agency is proud to help fund 1-800-GAMBLER and work with partners to promote responsible play and support people suffering gambling-related harms. Elizabeth Lanza, who leads the gaming board’s office of compulsive and problem gambling, said it is vital to share information about resources for Pennsylvanians whose gambling is causing negative impacts, including online prevention tools, responsible gaming initiatives, in-person and telehealth treatment and self-exclusion programs. Penn State University, working with DDAP and the gaming board, also conducts an annual assessment of interactive gaming in Pennsylvania to measure online gambling prevalence and identify characteristics linked to problems with it.
