(AsiaGameHub) – By: Adrian Kingsley
Congress has ignored a growing public health crisis for seven years. The gambling industry rakes in billions in taxable revenue every year. No federal body has ever been funded to study gambling addiction at a national level. That changes with a new bipartisan bill introduced this week.
Representatives Dan Goldman (NY-10) and Blake Moore (UT-01) introduced the Gambling Disorder Health Study Act. The bill requires the federal government to run a comprehensive, multi-year study of gambling disorder. It will examine causes, progression, and long-term impacts of the condition. It will also test the effectiveness of current prevention and treatment strategies. The research is funded by 10% of federal excise tax revenue from sports betting, for up to three fiscal years. The Department of Health and Human Services will send annual progress reports to Congress, along with policy recommendations.
The 2018 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Murphy v. NCAA let states legalize sports betting. That decision kicked off unprecedented growth for the gambling industry. In 2025, U.S. commercial gaming revenue hit a record $78.72 billion, up 9.2% from the prior year. More than one-quarter of Americans now have an active online sportsbook account. Over half of men aged 18 to 49 hold these accounts. One-third of men in that age group wager on online sports prediction markets. Online searches for gambling addiction support have risen 23% since 2018. An estimated 2 to 3% of Americans already meet criteria for a gambling disorder.
The federal government has collected tax revenue from gambling for years while ignoring its public health cost. This bill closes a dangerous regulatory gap that has stood far too long.
Author bio: Adrian Kingsley, an internationally renowned scholar focused on public administration and social policy research.