Media Advisory

Final Report on Groundbreaking Gambling Study To Be Presented to Massachusetts Gaming Commission

MAGIC research includes recommendations to support players’ health

DATE:          Thursday, Oct. 7

TIME:           10-11 a.m., approximately

WHAT:         Presentation of final MAGIC report to Massachusetts Gaming Commission

WHERE:       Virtual

LINK:            https://massgaming.com

CONTACT:   Rachel Volberg, rvolberg@schoolph.umass.edu 
                      Patty Shillington, pshillington@umass.edu, 305-606-9909

EMBARGOED FACT SHEET:  (embargo lifts Thursday, Oct. 7, after the presentation to the Massachusetts Gaming Commission)

The final report of an unprecedented gambling study – the Massachusetts Gambling Impact Cohort, known as MAGIC – will be presented Thursday, Oct. 7, to the Massachusetts Gambling Commission. The virtual meeting will be live-streamed for the media and public.

Co-lead investigator Rachel Volberg, research professor in the University of Massachusetts Amherst School of Public Health and Health Sciences, will discuss the findings of the study, which was mandated by Massachusetts legislation that approved the introduction of casinos in the Commonwealth.

Others speakers who will present information about the report’s recommendations  include Mark Vander Linden, the Gaming Commission’s director of research and responsible gaming, and Marie-Claire Flores-Pajot, the Gaming Commission’s research manager.

The study advances knowledge on gambling behaviors and recommends prevention, treatment and policy guidelines to support players’ health.