Crisis services for problem gamblers getting overhaul
Online chat support, mobile phone text support to be added
Almost 2,400 people were referred to counselling by the province’s crisis line for problem gamblers last year, but only half attended.
The crisis-line service provider 211 British Columbia Services Society fields 3,243 calls a year, or 62 per week, and referred 2,373 people to a problem gambling counsellor.
According to the Gaming Policy and Enforcement Branch’s annual report, 1,269 people received those services. Early intervention services and clinical counselling were delivered to a total of 1,612 people.
According to the Ministry of the Attorney General, 77 per cent of counselling clients showed “significant improvement.”
The branch is about to overhaul its crisis services for problem gamblers to include online chat support and mobile phone text support. Counselling is offered at no charge to anyone who calls for help.
Enhancements are to include a personal non-automated response to callers in less than one-and-a-half minutes, with service 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
The branch also delivered 2,387 problem gambling prevention presentations to more than 86,000 last year and organized a pilot program for early intervention counselling for at-risk gamblers.
But the most potent tool is a voluntary self-exclusion program in which people can register to be barred from casinos, bingo halls or B.C. Lottery Corporation’s Playnow.com gaming website for as little as six months and up to three years.
Self-excluded gamblers were identified and removed from casinos more than 9,500 times last fiscal year.
About 10,000 people are registered for exclusion, about 7,000 from facilities and 3,000 from Playnow.com.
Everyone who registers is offered free counselling.
BCLC is investing in ID scanners and uses licence plate readers to help identify people in the program. Lookout bulletins are issued if a participant tries repeatedly to enter casinos.
Attorney-General David Eby said this week that improvements to the program will be considered as part of a comprehensive review of the Gaming Control Act triggered by reports of widespread money laundering through B.C. casinos.
BCLC reported net income of $1.4 billion from casinos and lotteries in the 2017-18 fiscal year, based on record revenue of $3.3 billion.