You’ll see public service announcements starting this weekend and airing the rest of this month about the help available here in Iowa for problem gambling. We produced the PSAs with the Iowa Department of Public Health to highlight that March is National Problem Gambling Awareness Month.
The goal of the awareness effort is to educate the general public and health care professionals about the warning signs of problem gambling and raise awareness of the issue. The theme of this year’s campaign is “Have the conversation.”
If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, know that help is available in our state through the Iowa Gambling Treatment Program. Please call 1-800-BETSOFF or visit www.1800betsoff.org if you’re looking for more information. The hotline is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
We’ve received tremendous support from television stations, cable systems and radio stations across the state that have agreed to run the new PSA at no cost. Billboard companies also are running PSA messages on their screens. It’s our hope that this combined effort will provide the right information at the right time to someone in need.
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