Strangely overlooked in the stories announcing the pick of Kathleen Sebelius as HHS Secretary is what likely will be her most lasting legacy as Kansas Governor: her push to create state-owned casinos - something no state has ever done.
How can the nation's leading health care advocate be someone who has been a major supporter and partner with the predatory gambling trade? In casinos, 90% of the profits come from 10% of the gamblers. These out-of-control gamblers - addicts - are the trade's profit center. Neurological studies show that using intense gambling products release dopamine into the brain, a chemical that creates an effect similar to taking cocaine. Not only did Sebelius make these products widely accessible in Kansas, she lobbied for state government to own and sell them.
Sebelius's record on predatory gambling leaves her unqualified for HHS Secretary. Will she support federally-owned casinos next?
It is not a debate whether we "permit" gambling. The debate is about predatory gambling - using gambling to prey on human weakness for profit- and it is government’s version of subprime lending.
There are at least four major differences between social forms of gambling like church bingo, Friday night poker games or picking the Steelers in the office football pool versus predatory gambling products like slot machines: the speed of the games; the kind of buzz people get when they play; the amount of money people lose; and the predatory marketing used to promote it.
Here's a brief but excellent video by Casino Free Mass that captures why predatory gambling is indeed a serious national public health issue.