Regulation
NHS boss urges cryptocurrency regulation amid growing gambling problems
Unregulated gambling on cryptocurrencies is creating increased demand in NHS gambling clinics, according to Health Service chief Amanda Pritchard. She highlighted the urgent need for regulatory action to prevent young people becoming addicted to new forms of betting, arguing that the NHS cannot continue to shoulder the burden of social issues.
Pritchard pointed to the growing number of people seeking treatment after attempting to gain wealth through cryptocurrency trading, for example BitcoinOR betting on the market. He noticed that the 15 clinics specializing in gambling established across the country are facing a “real and growing social need” for treatment, describing gambling addiction as “a cruel disease that has the power to destroy people’s lives”.
Speaking at the Confed Expo NHS leaders conference, Pritchard warned that the health service cannot become an “expensive safety net” for social problems. He questioned whether society should continue to allow the methods that keep people trapped to become more and more sophisticated.
Increased demand for treatment
Pritchard’s call for regulatory measures comes amid reports from NHS staff of younger individuals in the making addicted to gambling on the unregulated cryptocurrency markets. He stressed that the NHS, already strained post-COVID, cannot afford to act as a one-stop shop for these issues. “This type of service is what the NHS was born to do, but it should not be our ambition now,” she said.
Last year, the Treasury Select Committee recommended bitcoin trading and other speculative activities Cryptocurrencies will be regulated like gambling 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 been withholding cryptographic resources, often considering them a “fun investment.” Anecdotal evidence also suggested that school children were speculating in these markets.
Cryptocurrency and gambling addiction
Pritchard described the addictive nature of cryptocurrency investing, where people risk their money on assets with no fixed value. He expressed concern that this growing problem could increase demand for NHS services. “The habit of addiction sees people investing their 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 diseases, including a significant increase in pre-diabetics. The National Diabetes Survey revealed that more than half a million more people were identified as pre-diabetic in the past year, an increase of nearly 20%.
The combination of the growing addiction to gambling related to cryptocurrency and other health challenges highlight the growing pressures on the NHS. Pritchard’s call for regulatory action highlights the need for social changes to address these growing problems and relieve pressure on health services.
Source:
“NHS chief calls for controls on cryptocurrencies after gambling problems rise”. The telegraph. June 12, 2024.