Editorial: Taking a hit on gambling

Thursday, March 9, 2006 | 7:18 a.m.

It turns out the percentage of Americans who have gambling problems is two to three times higher than the figure casino industry officials typically publicize, the National Council on Problem Gambling announced this week.

According to a story in Wednesday's Las Vegas Sun, 2 percent to 3 percent - or 6 million to 9 million - of American adults have gambling problems, compared to the 1 percent cited by gaming industry officials.

The number arises every time a community or state that doesn't have casino gaming considers adding it. As the number increases, it becomes tougher for industry officials to persuade public officials that the economic benefits gambling offers - jobs, tourism and taxes - outweigh the social price of making gambling more accessible.

But the 1 percent figure applies only to the most pathological gamblers and "doesn't represent the full scope of people with gambling problems," Keith Whyte, executive director of the gambling council, told the Sun. It also comes from a 1997 study that relied largely on data extrapolated from existing research - hardly a basis for revealing current trends.

Whyte's group bases its figure on people who showed various signs of problem gambling within the past year, the Sun reports. Nevada's percentage is generally believed to be twice as high as the national average.

But that, too, is based on outdated figures. The most recent figures, which come from state-funded research conducted in 2000, showed 5 percent to 8 percent of Nevadans were problem gamblers.

Last year the Nevada Legislature created a grant program that is funded by slot machine taxes and pays for problem gambling treatment and education. But without current data it would seem difficult to determine how much money should be spent on treatment or to what population an education campaign should be targeted. It also is hard to track the success or failure of education campaigns and treatment programs without current figures.

We need better figures, and we need them more often. The Legislature should establish funding for a biennial study of the prevalence of problem gambling that includes all levels of the affliction, not just the worst of the worst. It would help determine whether Nevada's tax-funded programs are effective. And it could bolster the casino industry's claims that it wants to be a positive community partner.