Don’t Bet on 24-Hour Gambling Proposal
Editor: Casinos have known problems associated with the use of their product. That is why the Illinois General Assembly originally limited casino gambling to riverboats — cruises could not exceed four hours, and gambling could not be conducted while the riverboats were docked.
Now the casinos want the Illinois Gaming Board to eliminate the last remaining safeguard and allow the casinos to stay open 24 hour a day, 7 days a week.
While bartenders cannot serve customers who are drunk, there are no laws to force casinos to stop gamblers from losing everything. While more than 5,700 gamblers are in the Self-Exclusion Program, many more addicted gamblers continue to gamble and will only go home when the casinos close. Last month, gamblers lost $147.7 million at Illinois casinos.
If the casinos never close, many addicted gamblers will continue to gamble well more than 24 hours straight. Newspapers report of addicted gamblers who have gambled for 30, 48, 72 and 81 hours without stopping. One attorney, who recently filed a lawsuit, gambled for four or five days straight at casinos in Atlantic City and Las Vegas.
Allowing 24-hour gambling will impact public safety. Addicted gamblers seem more hurried and take more risks during their heavier gambling activity and drive much like drunk drivers, according to Dr. Valerie Lorenz. The combination of alcohol and gambling can lead to serious suicide attempts.
To voice your concerns, write the Illinois Gaming Board, 160 N. LaSalle, Suite 300, Chicago, IL 60601.
— Anita Bedell,
Executive Director,
Illinois Church Action On Alcohol & Addiction Problems,
Springfield