Maryland Ranks As 13th Most Gambling-Addicted State

BALTIMORE, MD — High-rollers and casual gamblers alike are gearing up for some of the year’s biggest sports-betting events, but a new report suggests people in some states might consider simply watching from a distance this year. The high-profile NFL Draft is under way, two of horse racing’s three biggest events — the Kentucky Derby and the 143rd Preakness Stakes on May 19 in Baltimore — will follow in the coming weeks.

Ahead of these events, the personal finance website WalletHub released a new report ranking the most gambling-addicted states. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Nevada — home to Las Vegas, the famed “Sin City” — topped the list. But you might not know that Maryland ranked 13th in the country for most gambling-addicted state, according to the study. The state also is tied with four others in the country for the highest lottery sales per capita, the WalletHub study states.

The site ranked each state based on what it calls “gambling-friendliness” and “gambling problem and treatment.”

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To come up with its findings, WalletHub used 19 metrics, ranging from the amount of illegal gambling to per capita lottery ticket sales, to compare all 50 states and determine where excessive gambling is big. The website's study also looked at the number of adults in each suffering from gambling disorders.

In the study, Maryland had an overall score of 35.80. It ranked 11th when it came to gambling friendliness, a category that included the amount of casinos and gaming machines and other factors. The state was ranked sixth in the gambling and treatment category, which included the number of adults with gambling, as well as the number of gambling counselors available.

Nevada was ranked No. 1 with a score of 62.43. South Dakota, Montana, Mississippi and Louisiana rounded out the top five, respectively.

According to the National Council on Problem Gambling, around 1 percent to 3 percent of all U.S. adults suffer from a gambling disorder. The Economist reports that U.S.consumers lose more than $100 billion per year in gambling losses, and the average debt of a male gambling addict is between $55,000 and $90,000, according to Debt.org.

Go to WalletHub for the complete list.

Photo by Ecaterina Glazcova | Shutterstock