Government creates working group on mental health and prevention and reduction of problematic gambling.

The Interministerial Ordinance MF/MS/MESP/SECOM No. 37, which establishes the Interministerial Working Group on Mental Health and Prevention and Reduction of Harm from Problematic Gambling, was published in the Official Gazette of the Union this Monday (9).

The goal is to formulate and plan actions for prevention, harm reduction, and assistance to individuals and social groups in situations of persistent and recurrent problematic gambling behavior or those vulnerable to the problem, in the context of the commercial exploitation of sports betting and online games, which are addressed by Laws No. 13.756 and No. 14.790.

Competencies

The WG is responsible for developing the Action Plan for Mental Health and Prevention of Problematic Gambling, which will contain actions, policies, and measures for prevention, harm reduction, and assistance to vulnerable individuals and social groups, or those in situations of persistent and recurrent problematic gambling behavior, and may for this purpose:

I - promote the examination, analysis, and discussion of administrative actions, public policies, and suggestions for regulatory action;

II - propose any actions, policies, and measures deemed relevant for harm reduction and addressing the problem, observed the competencies of each Ministry, which are considered pertinent;

III - develop guidelines on prevention and treatment of health problems arising from betting; and

IV - coordinate with, or request, any public or private body or entity the provision of information or other types of collaboration useful to the performance of its competencies and specify the forms and deadlines for compliance when applicable.

Sole paragraph. The Working Group may include in the actions, policies, and measures of its competence, other measures of any nature considered necessary, including:

I - educational campaigns and actions;

II - awareness actions for bettors about the risks of betting, guidelines, and mental health assistance programs;

III - guidelines on prevention and treatment of problems related to betting; and

IV - parameters and criteria for guidance and direction of betting operators in actions of monitoring, profiling, and risk factor analysis, and identification of bettors in situations of persistent and recurrent behavior.

The Interministerial Working Group will be composed of:

I - four representatives from the Ministry of Finance;

II - four representatives from the Ministry of Health;

III - four representatives from the Ministry of Sports; and

IV - four representatives from the Social Communication Secretariat of the Presidency of the Republic.

Each representative will have an alternate, who will replace them in their absences and impediments. The representatives and their respective alternates will be appointed by the heads of the bodies they represent, within five days from the date of publication of this Ordinance.

The Executive Secretariat will be exercised cumulatively by the representative of the Secretariat of Prizes and Betting (SPA) of the Ministry of Finance designated for shared coordination.

The Interministerial Working Group may invite other public or private bodies or entities, national or foreign, to contribute to the execution of the work, without the right to vote in the discussions of the Collegiate.

Biweekly meetings and a deadline of 60 days for conclusion

The Working Group will meet, in ordinary session, at least biweekly, and, in extraordinary session, whenever convened by its coordinators or by one third of its members.

The activities of the Working Group will last sixty days for the delivery of a final report containing:

I - a brief description of the activities carried out and results; and

II - the Action Plan referred to in the Ordinance that creates the WG.

§ 1º The schedule of meetings should encompass at least the following phases, whose order may be altered by decision of the Group:

I - phase 1: discussion of scope, schedule, planning of invitations to entities, and prioritization;

II - phase 2: discussion about identification of channels and means of remote emergency assistance to users in situations of problematic gambling behavior;

III - phase 3: discussion about indicators, data, and methodologies for identification and classification of people at risk of, or vulnerable to, repeated problematic gambling behavior, including the discussion on ways and means of implementing mechanisms for excluding high-risk individuals from betting systems as well as integrative mechanisms among betting operators for horizontal observance of self-exclusion requests; and

IV - phase 4: discussion about strategies, protocols, and guidelines to be adopted in health services, including actions for personnel training, in the care and assistance to individuals in situations of problematic gambling behavior.

The deadline for the conclusion of the Working Group may be extended by act of the coordinators, provided that for a specified period and less than sixty days.

Source: GMB