Study commission, industry show signs of unity on issue of problem gambling

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. -- The National Gambling Impact Study Commission today moved closer toward coming to grips with problem gambling in America as it readies its report on the state of the industry.

Making the nine-member commission's job easier has been the recognition by the casino industry that it needs to do a better job of creating awareness and funding treatment of disordered gamblers.

Today, Frank Fahrenkopf, president of the Washington-based American Gaming Association, offered a series of proposals aimed at showing the commission that casinos are serious about stepping up their role.

Fahrenkopf, who also called on the rest of the gambling industry to pitch in, appeared before the commission at a two-hour round-table discussion with problem-gambling experts and casino critics on the campus of Pat Robertson's Regent University.

Afterward, Commission Chairwoman Kay James said both sides of the issue appeared to be coming together, and she expressed optimism that the commission would be able to make some meaningful recommendations to help shed new light on the little-researched subject.

Earlier today, during a discussion on a new commission survey of gambling behavior, Commissioner Terry Lanni, chairman of MGM Grand Inc., left little doubt that the casino industry is ready to accept greater responsibility for addictive gamblers.

Lanni asked his colleagues on the panel to concentrate more on addressing problem gambling than arguing over how widespread it is in society.

"Let's accept there's a problem," Lanni said. "We need to focus on the problem and how to cure it."

At the round-table discussion, Paul Ashe, president of the National Council on Problem Gambling, offered his own suggestions to encourage the industry to heighten awareness among its employees and customers.

Many of the recommendations, such as setting up hotlines for customers and educating employees, already have been implemented at many casinos.

Ashe also suggested that states regulating gambling should require companies to help pay for problem-gambling programs through extra licensing fees. Fahrenkopf supported the idea, indicating that the states were well within their rights to ask for such fees.

State-run lotteries, Ashe said, also should be encouraged to set aside revenues for treatment and prevention of problem gambling.

Bernie Horn, communications director for the National Coalition Against Legalized Gambling, urged the commission to encourage states to spend "substantial sums on gambling-addiction research, education and treatment."

Horn criticized the gambling industry for being "extremely remiss" in addressing gambling addictions.

"Current short-lived efforts remain meager and extremely inadequate," he said.

But Fahrenkopf insisted casinos indeed are committed to improving their performance.

The casino industry, he said, recognizes that "one problem gambler is one too many."

The industry opened the door to research on disordered gambling in 1996, when it created the National Center for Responsible Gambling on the campus of the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

More than two dozen industry donors have pledged $5 million since then to help the center conduct research.

Christine Reilly, executive director of the center, told the commission her goal is to broaden her donor base beyond casino companies to make the center the hub of the nation's research efforts.

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