Article Summary<\/p>\n
JB Pritzker signed a bill last week that officially recognizes gambling addiction under the state\u2019s Substance Use Disorder Act, expanding options for treatment.
\nAdvocates of the bill call it a \u201cmassive step\u201d forward in terms of normalization and recognizing the issue but say it needs to be supported by funding.
\nThe bill does not address the issue of Medicaid reimbursement, but future legislation could build on the law to secure reimbursement certainty.<\/p>\n
This summary was written by the reporters and editors who worked on this story.<\/p>\n
CHICAGO \u2014 Gov. JB Pritzker signed a bill Friday that officially recognizes gambling disorder as an addiction in Illinois.<\/p>\n
The legislation, Senate Bill 2749<\/a>, updates the state\u2019s existing Substance Use Disorder Act to codify gambling addiction under the same framework as alcohol and drug use disorders, allowing the Illinois Department of Human Services\u2019 behavioral health division to offer programs and support to compulsive gamblers and affected families.<\/p>\n The bill\u2019s sponsor, Sen. Julie Morrison, D-Lake Forest, said recognizing the disorder under the law would make it easier for the state to provide resources for those struggling with gambling addiction.<\/p>\n \u201cWe see people who have alcohol dependencies, people who have drug addictions. I think we recognize those as disorders, and it\u2019s in statute, and we are providing different granting mechanisms, different ways to help those people across the state,\u201d Morrison said. \u201cWe haven\u2019t done that with gambling, and that\u2019s what this bill is about. It\u2019s just recognizing the fact this is also another addiction disorder, and those people also need the help.\u201d<\/p>\n The bill passed with broad bipartisan support this spring, receiving dissenting votes from only 11 Republican representatives in the House and passing unanimously in the Senate.<\/p>\n Open interactive chart in new tab<\/a><\/p>\n Gambling disorder is often considered a hidden disease, as the symptoms can be less physically evident than alcohol or drug abuse. But according to experts, the dopamine release that compulsive gamblers receive when placing a bet creates a compulsion just as strong.<\/p>\n Gambling also has one of the highest rates of suicide of any addictive disorder; the National Council on Problem Gambling estimates one in five<\/a> compulsive gamblers have tried to take their own life.<\/p>\n In Illinois, more than a million people<\/a>, over one in 10 adults, are estimated to have a gambling addiction or to be at risk of developing one.<\/p>\n A recent investigation by Capitol News Illinois and Illinois Answers project found that people in Illinois lost over $7.7 billion<\/a> gambling last year. That spending is fueled by compulsive gamblers, who drain inheritances, work bonuses and nest eggs<\/a> to fund their addiction.<\/p>\n Read more: Addicted to gambling in Illinois: \u2018Someone has decided they can make money off you\u2019<\/a> | What compulsive gamblers know<\/a><\/p>\n The ability to hide the disease \u2014 and the lack of public awareness about it \u2014 means people don\u2019t often seek treatment, according to providers who specialize in gambling addiction treatment.<\/p>\n When they do, the resources available to help them remain \u201ca leap year behind\u201d treatment options for alcohol and drug addiction, according to Ryan Aten, a policy analyst with the Illinois Association for Behavioral Health, or IABH, which advocates for the prevention and treatment of addiction and mental illness.<\/p>\n Still, Aten cheered the bill becoming law as a \u201cmassive step\u201d forward.<\/p>\n \u201cSUD (substance use disorder) has treatment facilities. There\u2019s not gambling facilities in the same way,\u201d Aten said. \u201cThis is a big step because we\u2019re really bringing the attention first. Attention is the thing that gambling needs, because it is something so normalized as a whole.\u201d<\/p>\n According to IDHS, recognizing gambling as an addiction under the law is intended to provide a level of legitimization for the disorder, helping to address public stigma.<\/p>\n The bill took immediate effect after receiving Pritzker\u2019s signature.<\/p>\n What\u2019s covered, and what\u2019s not<\/p>\n Before the passage of the bill, compulsive gamblers in Illinois could only receive state-funded inpatient services if they also had a substance use disorder that required in-patient treatment. The law now allows the state to offer treatment for compulsive gambling on its own, according to IDHS.<\/p>\n It also allows the state to provide additional training to addiction counselors and expands options for prevention services, such as offering early awareness and intervention programs in high schools and colleges.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Pritzker Administration has made clear that gambling must be responsibly regulated, with strong consumer protections and meaningful investments in treatment and prevention,\u201d a spokesperson for Pritzker told Capitol News Illinois in an email. \u201cSB 2749 builds on that commitment by strengthening Illinois\u2019 approach to gambling disorder prevention, education and treatment.\u201d<\/p>\n However, advocates like IABH worry about the lack of guaranteed funding or specific timeline for implementation in the legislation. The bill did not allocate any new funding for treatment, though lawmakers set aside $15 million in the fiscal year 2026 budget<\/a> to the treatment and prevention of compulsive gambling, up $5 million from the year before<\/a>.<\/p>\n But the amount the state actually spends to treat gambling addiction remains small: Only $0.06 for every $100<\/a> collected in state gambling taxes was devoted to treatment and prevention last year.<\/p>\n People familiar with the bill say it does not make gambling addiction treatment eligible for Medicaid payments, a major barrier to treatment for low-income people, though IABH analyst Aten said he hoped to see a bill introduced next session that could build on the groundwork laid by this law.<\/p>\n Now that the addiction has been recognized, Aten added, the actual prevention and treatment resources can follow.<\/p>\n \u201cThis bill has been probably one of the biggest gambling bills we\u2019ve seen in many, many years, because it does bring that awareness and does bring the attention to an emerging problem,\u201d Aten said.<\/p>\n