The president of the Brazilian Psychiatric Association, Antônio Geraldo da Silva, stated that the SUS does not have the structure to face the challenge of gambling addiction. In his testimony to the Bets CPI on Tuesday (1st), he defended investments in the area and asked Congress to restrict gambling in the country.
The representative of the Ministry of Health, Sônia Barros, listed the government’s work fronts to address the problem. The rapporteur of the CPI, Senator Soraya Tronicke (Podemos-MS), stated that the final report will contain “severe” proposals to curb excessive gambling.
There are many reasons why people look for online betting. However, for 53% of bettors, according to the Locomotiva Institute, the goal is to make money. This information was mentioned by the president of the Brazilian Psychiatric Association, Antônio Geraldo da Silva, during a hearing at the CPI.
SUS structure and government actions
Antônio Geraldo da Silva stated that the SUS does not have a support structure for Mental Health.
“The situation today is serious. So, we would be very grateful if we could help promote health in this House by making restrictions or even bans on games; and we ask that you invest more in the area of mental health, psychiatry, psychology, because we depend on this to treat those who are already addicted,” he said.
The director of the Department of Mental Health at the Ministry of Health, Sônia Barros, mentioned that, among the government’s actions to tackle the problem, is the creation of the “Mental Health and Problem Gambling Prevention Action Plan”.
The plan is being developed by an inter-ministerial working group, which includes the expansion of the Psychosocial Care Network and investment in research on the topic.
“Like all health problems, in general, we do not have an immediate solution. It is a process and we start. We are doing this through the expansion of the Network – this is being implemented, and through the qualification of the teams so that they can better serve this population and all others, too”, he stated.
Stricter rules for the sector
Senator Izalci Lucas, from the PL of the Federal District, defended that Congress approve projects that help mitigate the disruptions caused by games. Limiting advertising is one of them.
“This issue of advertising, we will, in fact, have to limit this, because everything you do, you open your cell phone here, or anything, there is the advertising of bets. Bets everywhere.”
The rapporteur of the CPI das Bets, Senator Soraya Tronicke, stated that the commission’s final report will include strict rules on the subject. “We are already working on very strict regulations, with limits on games, weekly participation, and a limit on credit cards,” she stated.
The next meeting of the CPI das Bets will be next Tuesday (8), and will have as a guest the president of the Central Bank, Gabriel Galípolo.