ADA Facts
Gambling

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Pathological gambling has been defined as a progressive disorder characterized by a continuous or periodic loss of control over gambling; a preoccupation with gambling and with obtaining money with which to gamble; irrational thinking; and a continuation of the behavior despite adverse consequences.

Basic Facts

• Forty-seven of 50 states have some form of legalized gambling.
• In 1995, $550 billion was wagered legally in the United States representing 9 percent of personal income while legal gaming revenues mounted to $44 billion.
• In 2000-01, 24 million gamblers visited the nine casinos in Missouri.
• In 1998, gamblers lost $50 billion in legal wagering.
• Casinos are legal in 28 states; riverboat casinos are legal in six states, including Missouri.
• In 1997, 37 states and the District of Columbia had lotteries on which they rely to fund government services; they garnered $34 billion in sales, not counting electric gambling devices.
• The lottery is the most widespread form of legal gambling in the United States; lotteries have the worst odds of any form of gambling.
• Nevada and Oregon are the only two states where wagering on sports is legal.
• Estimates of illegal sports betting in the Unites States range from $80 billion to $380 billion annually, making sports betting the most widespread and popular form of gambling in America.

Extent of Problem

• Up to four percent of the United States population is estimated to have a serious gambling problem.
• It is estimated that compulsive gamblers cost American business $40 billion annually in lost wages and insurance claims.
• As many as 10 to 17 people may be innocent victims of each compulsive gambler: spouse, children, parents, other relatives, employers, co-workers, and friends.
• Two of three compulsive gamblers will commit illegal activities to pay gambling related debts and /or to continue gambling.
• A prison inmate survey reveals that 30 percent of all inmates are probable compulsive gamblers.
• 13 percent of inmates stated that gambling was related to their reason for incarceration.
• Bankruptcy due to gambling-related activities is rising significantly.

Pathological Gambling Facts

• The average gambler entering treatment owes between $53,350 and $92,000.
• One of every five pathological gamblers attempts suicide.
• Fifty percent of pathological gamblers have substance abuse problems, and 25 percent of all substance abusers are probable compulsive gamblers.
• Spouses of male compulsive gamblers are three times more likely to attempt suicide than their counterparts in the general population.
• Thirty-seven percent of gamblers' spouses report that they have physically abused their children.
• Gamblers' spouses experience high rates of stress-related illnesses.
• Children of compulsive gamblers attempt suicide two times as often as classmates; do worse in school; are more likely to have alcohol, drug or gambling problems; and are more likely to have eating disorders and to experience depression.

Help for Compulsive Gamblers and Their Families

• As of 1996, 21 states have funded programs for problem gamblers. Most programs are limited to prevention, education, and referral activity.
• Missouri offers free counseling to compulsive gamblers and their family members through 22 outpatient treatment programs.
• The Department of Mental Health is part of the Missouri Alliance to Curb Problem Gambling, a statewide coalition of public, private, and not-for-profit organizations dedicated to heightening public awareness of the dangers of problem-gambling and to promoting the availability of treatment for Missourians who have a gambling problem.

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For more information,contact the
Missouri Department of Mental Health, Division of Alcohol and Drug Abuse
P.O. Box 687, 1706 East Elm
Jefferson City, MO 65102
573-751-4942
1-800-364-9687