Assembly adds problem gambling to insurance coverage; members debate parity and funding
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Summary
The Assembly passed a bill to add problem‑gambling treatment to insurance coverage, aligning it with other addictions. Sponsors called it a public‑health measure; members raised questions about mental‑health parity, provider availability and state revenue use.
The Assembly on March 24 approved a change to the insurance law to require coverage for problem‑gambling treatment similar to coverage for alcoholism and other substance‑use disorders.
Sponsor and committee advocate (label 30) described evidence presented at hearings showing rising harms from sports wagering and argued the change would expand access to treatment. “All the bill does is put gambling addiction on the exact same footing as coverage for alcoholism and substance use disorders,” the sponsor said.
Several members questioned whether existing mental‑health parity laws already required coverage and whether insurers were already providing some services. Assemblymember Gandolfo (label 31) said parity enforcement has been “largely illusory” for families seeking care, and members pressed how services would be defined and where qualified providers would be found.
Members also debated whether state gaming revenues should be increased for treatment. The sponsor noted an existing set‑aside from sports‑betting revenue (cited in floor remarks as roughly $12 million in the current year) and suggested the funding stream should be increased to meet demand. The bill passed by voice vote with a recorded tally of Ayes 132, Nays 10.
What happens next: the measure will be sent for enactment; regulators and insurers will determine covered services and provider networks under existing parity and OASAS rules.
