While betting can be a source of entertainment for many, for some, there is a point when gambling not only ceases to be fun, but becomes problematic. For such people, help to overcome this disorder is readily accessible on a national and state level. Even more encouraging, problem gambling and gambling addiction are treatable illnesses that we here at Online-Casinos-US take seriously.
The information presented here is meant to assist those wishing to learn more and provide a direct line to help. While this list is hardly exhaustive, it is more than a good place to start. Below are both national and state-level organizations that can provide help not only to gamblers themselves, but also their loved ones. Additional information related to responsible gambling is also available not only with Online-Casinos-US, but also with most major gaming brands.
National Organizations
National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG)
The NCPG is an umbrella organization with dozens of branches in many US states. It’s overall goal is to raise awareness, provide assistance, offer education, and distribute information on problem gambling. To this end, the NCPG, among other things, offers a single national hotline, provides certification and training for gambling counselors, and works with state governments, gaming companies themselves, and individual people. By focusing on the costs to people and their families, NCPG hopes to affect change both on the personal level as well as the policy level.
Gambler’s Anonymous (GA)
Perhaps one of the most well-known organizations in the field, Gambler’s Anonymous defines itself as an “international fellowship” of people suffering from a compulsive gambling problem. The organization has branches in 50 states in the United States and has regular meetings with members, whose only criteria for membership is “a desire to stop gambling.” GA also has branches in Australia, the UK, Japan, Mexico, South Africa, and more.
Gam-Anon
Similar to Gambler’s Anonymous, Gam-Anon defines itself as a fellowship of men and women who are have been affected by problem gambling of a friend or loved one. However, whereas members of GA are themselves gamblers, Gam-Anon members are people who have been adversely affected by a person suffering from problem gambling, such as family members or close friends. Recognizing that problem gambling causes emotional distress, financial difficulty, and other problems not just for gamblers, but also their loved ones, the organization attempts to offer those affected a means of helping their situation.
GamTalk
Similar to GA or the NCPG, GamTalk is a national support organization for both gamblers and those affected by problem gambling. However, whereas Gambler’s Anonymous and other support groups focus on the in-person experience, GamTalk attempts to provide a safe, electronic space for people to share their experiences and chat with others dealing with problem gambling. GamTalk is international and provides an extensive list of resources for those seeking treatment and/or information.
National Drug Helpline and National Suicide Prevention Line
While not focused solely on problem gambling, these two well-known organizations still can provide crucial information related to treatment and understanding the nature of the illness of addiction. While it might seem macabre and alarming that the National Suicide Prevention Line is listed in many gambling addiction resources, it demonstrates that problem gambling is no less a serious issue and has profound effects on mental health of the person suffering from the illness, as well as their families and loved ones.
State Organizations
All states in the United States have realized that gambling is a dangerous addiction, which can sometimes lead to a decrease in the standard of living and damage to their residents. Therefore, apart from the organizations of the whole country, in order to help the local residents, in every country there is at least one place where the residents can go and get the help they need.
Below is a complete table with the list of organizations, their addresses and ways to contact them – in alphabetical order.
State | Organization | Website | Contact |
Alabama | *Alabama Council on Compulsive Gambling *Alabama Department of Public Health | http://www.alccg.org http://www.adph.org/ | 1-334-277-5100 1-800-252-1818 |
Alaska | *Alaska Department of Health and Social Services | https://dhss.alaska.gov/Pages/default.aspx | dhssreorg@alaska.gov |
Arizona | *Arizona Council on Compulsive *Gambling Arizona Office of Problem Gambling | http://www.azccg.org https://problemgambling.az.gov | 1-800-777-7207 602-542-8998 |
Arkansas | *Arkansas Problem Gambling Council *Arkansas Department of Health & Human Services | https://arpgcouncil.org/ https://humanservices.arkansas.gov/ | 1-800-522-4700 1-844-763-0198 |
California | *California Council on Problem Gambling *California Department of Public Health *California Health and Human Services Agency | https://calpg.online/ https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/OPG/Pages/opg-landing.aspx https://www.chhs.ca.gov/ | 951-440-1699 916-558-1784 N/A |
Colorado | *Problem Gambling Coalition of Colorado *Colorado Department of Human Services | https://www.problemgamblingcoalitioncolorado.org/ https://cdhs.colorado.gov/ | 800-522-4700 303-866-5700 |
Connecticut | *Connecticut Council on Problem Gambling *Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services | https://ccpg.org/ https://portal.ct.gov/DMHAS/Programs-and-Services/Problem-Gambling/PGS—Home-Page | 1-888-789-7777 860-344-2244 |
Delaware | *Delaware Council on Gambling Problems *Delaware Division of Substance Abuse and Mental Health | https://www.deproblemgambling.org/ https://www.dhss.delaware.gov/dhss/dsamh/gambling.html | 888-850-8888 https://delaware.gov/contact/ |
Florida | *Florida Council on Compulsive Gambling *Florida Department of Health | https://gamblinghelp.org/ https://www.floridahealth.gov/ | 888-ADMIT-IT 850-245-4444 |
Georgia | *The Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities | https://dbhdd.georgia.gov/ | 404-657-2252 |
Hawaii | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Idaho | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Illinois | *Illinois Council on Problem Gambling | http://www.icpg.info | 217-652-9611 |
Indiana | *Indiana Council on Problem Gambling *Indiana Family and Social Services Administration | http://indianaproblemgambling.org/ https://www.in.gov/fssa/dmha/addiction-services/problem-gambling/ | 800-994-8448 800-994-8448 |
Iowa | *Iowa Gambling Treatment Program | https://yourlifeiowa.org/gambling | 855-895-8398 |
Kansas | *Kansas Coalition on Problem Gambling | https://www.ksproblemgambling.org/ | N/A |
Kentucky | *Kentucky Council on Problem Gambling *Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services | https://www.kygamblinghelp.org/ https://chfs.ky.gov/Pages/index.aspx | 1-800-426-2537 800-372-2973 |
Louisiana | *Louisiana Association on Compulsive Gambling *Louisiana Office of Behavioral Health | https://www.helpforgambling.org/ https://ldh.la.gov/page/1545 | 1-877-770-7867 1-877-770-STOP |
Maine | *Maine Council on Problem Gambling | https://maineproblemgambling.org/ | info@maineproblemgambling.org |
Maryland | *Maryland Council on Problem Gambling *Maryland Center of Excellence on Problem Gambling *Maryland Department of Health | https://www.marylandproblemgambling.org/ https://www.mdproblemgambling.com/ https://health.maryland.gov/Pages/Home.aspx | 1-800-426-2537 1-800-426-2537 1-877-463-3464| |
Massachusetts | *Massachusetts Council on Gaming and Health *Massachusetts Office of Problem Gambling ServicesGameSense | https://macgh.org/ https://www.mass.gov/orgs/office-of-problem-gambling-services https://gamesensema.com/ | 1-800-GAM-1234 617-624-5012 617-979-8400 |
Michigan | *Michigan Association on Problem Gambling | http://www.michapg.com | 517-672-6904 |
Minnesota | *Minnesota Alliance on Problem Gambling *Minnesota Department of Human Services | https://www.mnapg.org https://getgamblinghelp.com/ | 1-800-333-4673 1-800-333-HOPE |
Mississippi | *Mississippi Council on Problem & Compulsive Gambling *Mississippi Department of Health | http://www.msgambler.org http://www.msdh.state.ms.us/ | 1-888-777-9696 1-866-HLTHY4U |
Missouri | *Missouri Department of Mental Health | https://dmh.mo.gov/ada/ | 573-751-4942 |
Montana | *Montana Council on Problem Gambling *Montana Department of Health and Human Services | http://www.mtproblemgambling.org http://dphhs.mt.gov/ | 888-900-9979 888-866-0328 |
Nebraska | *Nebraska Council on Problem Gambling *Nebraska Gamblers Assistance Program | http://www.NEproblemgambling.org http://problemgambling.nebraska.gov/ | 833-BETOVER 1-833-238-6837 |
Nevada | *Nevada Council on Problem Gambling | http://www.nevadacouncil.org | 1-800-522-4700 |
New Hampshire | *New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services *New Hampshire Council on Problem Gambling | https://www.dhhs.nh.gov/ http://nhproblemgambling.org | 1-800-735-2964 603-225-9540 |
New Jersey | *Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey *New Jersey Department of Human Services | http://www.800gambler.org http://www.state.nj.us/humanservices | 800-GAMBLER 1-800-382-6717 |
New Mexico | *New Mexico Council on Problem Gambling *Responsible Gaming Association of New Mexico | http://councilonproblemgambling.com http://www.rganm.org | N/A 888-696-2440 |
New York | *New York Council on Problem Gambling *Know the Odds *Family Toolkit | http://www.nyproblemgambling.org https://knowtheodds.org/ https://nyproblemgambling.org/resources/family-toolkit/ | 1-518-867-4084 N/A N/A N/A |
North Carolina | *North Carolina Council on Problem Gambling *North Carolina Division of Mental Health | http://www.nccouncilpg.org https://www.ncdhhs.gov/divisions/mhddsas | 336-681-8516 1-800-662-7030 |
North Dakota | *North Dakota Department of Health | http://www.health.state.nd.us/ | 701-328-2372 |
Ohio | *The Problem Gambling Network of Ohio *Ohio Problem Gambling Hotline *Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services | http://www.pgnohio.org/ http://GamblingHelpOhio.org http://mha.ohio.gov/ | 1-800+589-9966 N/A N/A |
Oklahoma | *Oklahoma Association on Problem Gambling and Gaming *Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services | http://www.oapgg.org http://ok.gov/odmhsas/ | 1-800-522-4700 N/A |
Oregon | *Oregon Council on Problem Gambling | https://www.opgr.org/ | 1-877-MY-LIMIT |
Pennsylvania | *Council on Compulsive Gambling of Pennsylvania *Pennsylvania’s Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs | http://www.pacouncil.com https://www.ddap.pa.gov/Get%20Help%20Now/Pages/Problem-Gambling.aspx | 1-800-GAMBLER 717-783-8200 |
Rhode Island | *Rhode Island Council on Problem Gambling *Rhode Island Department of Behavioral Healthcare, Developmental Disabilities and Hospitals *Problem Gambling Services *Problem Gambling Services of Rhode Island | http://www.RICPG.com http://www.bhddh.ri.gov/index.php http://www.problemgamblingservices.com/ http://www.pgsri.org/ | 401-354-2877 401-462-3482 401-499-2472 401-383-0301 |
South Carolina | *South Carolina Department of Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Services | http://www.daodas.sc.gov/ | 803-896-5555 |
South Dakota | *South Dakota Department of Social Services | https://dss.sd.gov/ | 605-773-3165 |
Tennessee | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Texas | *Texas Department of State Health Service | http://www.dshs.state.tx.us/sa/findingservices/problemgambling.shtm | 888-963-7111 |
Utah | *Utah Department of Health | http://www.health.utah.gov/ | N/A |
Vermont | *Virginia Council on Problem Gambling | https://www.healthvermont.gov/ | 800-464-4343 |
Virginia | *Virginia Council on Problem Gambling *Virginia Department of Health | http://vcpg.net https://www.vdh.virginia.gov/ | 1-888-532-3500 N/A |
Washington | *Evergreen Council on Problem Gambling *Washington State Health Care Authority | http://www.evergreencpg.org https://www.hca.wa.gov/health-care-services-supports/behavioral-health-recovery/problem-gambling | 1-800-547-6133 peersupportprogram@hca.wa.gov |
West Virginia | *West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources *The Problem Gamblers Help Network of West Virginia | http://www.wvdhhr.org/ http://www.1800gambler.net/ | 304-558-0684 1-800-426-2537 |
Wisconsin | *Wisconsin Council on Problem Gambling *Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services | http://www.wi-problemgamblers.org https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/ | 1-800-426-2535 608-266-1865 |
Wyoming | *Wyoming Council on Problem Gambling *Wyoming Department of Health | http://www.wyomingcpg.org https://health.wyo.gov/ | 1-800-522-4700 1-866-571-0944 |