Banning Online Casinos is not the answer

Carol  O’Hare who is the Executive Director of the Nevada Council on Problem Gambling says that banning online casinos is far from the best means of dealing with  the problem of gambling addiction. She suggests that problem gambling is not going to go away just because it is removed from the internet and reminds us of the time of prohibition in the US where alcoholics always managed to find alcohol and the only beneficiary was organised crime. O’Hare claims that education and treatment are far more effective and that the number of people with gambling problems remains the same now as before online gambling was available. According to mental health specialists the problem is the same as those who abuse other substances such as alcohol and drugs and while the problem exists they will find what they are looking for; the only answer is treatment and regulation. Many online casinos already either place limits on deposit amounts in a given time period or they allow players to set their own limits and once set they can only be changed after a set cooling off period. The statements from O’Hare will come as a blow to those supporting the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act as problem gambling is one of their key arguments against legalization and regulation and as reported here several bills are in process to do just that.