Regulation
NHS chief urges regulation of cryptocurrencies amid growing gambling problems
Unregulated cryptocurrency gambling is creating increased demand at NHS gambling clinics, according to Amanda Pritchard, head of the health service. She highlighted the urgent need for regulatory action to stop young people becoming addicted to new forms of betting, arguing that the NHS cannot continue to carry the burden of societal problems.
Pritchard highlighted the growing number of people seeking treatment after trying to get rich through cryptocurrency trading, as BitcoinOr playing on the market. She noted that the 15 clinics specializing in gaming established across the country address a “real and growing social need” for treatment, describing gaming addiction as “a cruel disease that has the power to destroy people’s lives.”
Addressing the Confed Expo conference of NHS leaders, Pritchard warned the health service cannot become an “expensive safety net” for societal problems. She questioned whether society should continue to allow the methods that keep people addicted to become more and more sophisticated.
Increased demand for treatment
Pritchard’s call for regulatory action comes amid reports from NHS staff that young people are getting younger and younger. addicted to gambling on unregulated cryptocurrency markets. She stressed that the NHS, already strained post-COVID, cannot afford to be a catch-all for these issues. “This type of service is why the NHS was born, but it should not be our ambition now,” she said.
Last year, the Treasury Select Committee recommended that Bitcoin and other speculative transactions cryptocurrencies be regulated as games of chance protect consumers from the risks of the $1.2 trillion market. A 2022 survey cited by the committee found that around one in ten adults in the UK have detained crypto assets, often viewing them as a “fun investment.” Anecdotal evidence also suggests that schoolchildren were speculating in these markets.
Cryptocurrency and gambling addiction
Pritchard described the addictive nature of investing in cryptocurrencies, where people risk their money on assets with no fixed value. She said she was concerned that the growing problem could increase demand for NHS services. “The addictive habit sees people investing their own money in something with no fixed value, with the NHS left to pick up the pieces,” she said.
Pritchard also highlighted a “rising tide” of patients suffering from obesity-related illnesses, including a significant increase in the number of people with pre-diabetes. The National Diabetes Audit found that more than half a million more people were identified as pre-diabetic in the past year, representing an increase of almost 20%.
The combination of increasing gambling addiction related to cryptocurrency and other health challenges highlight the growing pressures on the NHS. Pritchard’s call for regulatory action highlights the need for societal changes to address these growing problems and ease pressure on the health service.
Source:
“NHS chief calls for controls on cryptocurrency after gambling problems rise”. The telegraph. June 12, 2024.