Public Health Advocacy Institute (PHAI) Joins Congressional Leaders to Reintroduce SAFE Bet Act Ahead of March Madness

The Public Health Advocacy Institute (PHAI) at Northeastern University School of Law supports Congressman Paul D. Tonko (NY-20) and Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) as they reintroduced the SAFE Bet Act, which addresses the risks associated with legalized gambling.

As of 2025, 39 states and the District of Columbia have legalized sports betting, but the necessary safeguards are not in place to address the public health risks that legalizing sports betting creates. The SAFE Bet Act, first introduced in September 2024, addresses those public health concerns.

The SAFE Bet Act establishes federal standards while preserving the opportunity for anyone who wishes to participate in legal sports betting. These standards will address advertising, affordability, and artificial intelligence issues.

Director of Gambling Policy at PHAI, Dr. Harry Levant, said: “The rapid and unprecedented expansion of the gambling industry has resulted in a public health crisis the scope of which we are only beginning to recognize.”

“Once unthinkable partnerships between the gambling industry, professional and collegiate sports, broadcast media, and technology companies have resulted in the delivery of non-stop gambling action on virtually every phone, tablet, computer, and television. Gambling is a known addictive product, and the 2025 SAFE Bet Act protects the public by replacing the ethically flawed ‘responsible gaming’ model with comprehensive public health solutions designed to prevent gambling-related harm,” Levant added.

“Like cigarettes, online sports gambling apps are a highly addictive product designed to entrap consumers into compulsive use, robbing them of free choice as well their money. The Safe Bets Act aims, among other things, to eliminate the predatory features of current sports betting apps, still allowing users to bet on the game but not to bet compulsively instead of even watching the game,” said PHAI President and Professor of Law at Northeastern University, Richard Daynard.

“Where there is a public health problem, there needs to be a public health solution. At PHAI, we understand that blaming the people who are struggling with gambling and referring to them as ‘irresponsible’ consumers is not a public health solution. The 2025 SAFE Bet Act recognizes that the government needs to take a more active role when dealing with the new high-intensity sports gambling products that are causing so much pain today. The SAFE Bet Act is a public health solution,” said Mark Gottlieb, Executive Director of PHAI.