Diagnoses of gambling disorder rose more than 60% since 2018 in states that have legalized sports betting, with the biggest increase among young men, according to a new study of electronic health records across the U.S.

Gambling Disorder on the Rise

Gambling disorder is a recognized mental health condition in which patients often cannot stop gambling, despite the growing distress and harm they experience. The rate of gambling disorder in states with legalized sports betting rose from 3.0 per 100,000 to 4.8 per 100,000, according to Epic Research, a private firm known in the medical field for its research on public health trends.

Experts say the findings offer more evidence of potential fallout from the decision to legalize sports betting — at a time when more online betting sites, like prediction markets, are taking off. The American Gaming Association, a trade group that represents sportsbooks and other gambling companies, said the study reflected greater awareness of gambling addiction, not a growing underlying problem.

However, other experts stressed that problem gambling is much more common than what Epic Research’s analysis was able to capture. While a few states have conducted recent studies to examine the prevalence of problem gambling, the last federally funded national study was conducted in 1999.

Access to treatment still varies widely depending on location even as online betting has erupted across the U.S. So does state funding for gambling prevention, education, and services — which is often drawn from state tax revenue collected from gambling companies.

Original reporting: NBC4 Los Angeles — read the source article.