NCPG Launches 1-800-MY-RESET

The National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG) has officially launched 1-800-MY-RESET as its new National Problem Gambling Helpline number, marking the organization’s clearest step yet to move beyond the legal and organizational headaches that surrounded their long standing 1-800-GAMBLER number.

The number has been rolled out nationwide and will route callers directly to trained NCPG support staff, who can provide free referrals for more local help or even crisis assistance. NCPG said in a statement that the new number is meant to be not only easier to remember but also less stigmatizing and better aligned with a national gambling market that spans online casinos, mobile sportsbooks, and state lotteries. 

The rollout also presented a practical resolution to a dispute last fall that raised concerns about the ongoing ability of the NCPG to provide gambling support across the US.

How We Got Here

As detailed previously, the beginnings of the original 1-800-GAMBLER number go back more than four decades. It was first acquired by the Council on Compulsive Gambling of New Jersey (CCGNJ) way back in 1984, as gambling harm from the newly opened Atlantic City casinos became more widespread.  

As gambling began to spread in the 90s, the number was passed on to other statewide affiliates and chapters of the NCPG, as it was seen as memorable, and the CCGNJ simply shouldered the cost, and the number slowly became the de facto problem gambling help line.

And not only a phone number. In 200pasp1, the New Jersey Council established 800gambler.org. And as technology advanced, the helpline grew into text and chat, and not just in English, but eventually hundreds of languages were supported. 

But after the repeal of PASPA in 2018, as dozens of states legalized sports betting, call numbers soared by more than 150%. The strain on just the New Jersey chapter became too much, and a deal was struck in 2022 for a three-year term that would see the NCPG pay the CCGNJ $150,000 annually for the right to use the number, eventually spending an additional $1.4 million a year for routing center, text and chat services, and most importantly, staffing and training.

By 2024, the call volume only continued to grow. The NCPG was reporting a double digit increase across all channels, underscoring what most advocates and regulators already knew: gambling related harm was no longer a state-by-state issue but one that would need to be dealt with nationally. 

The Legal Break, and the Risk That Comes With It

All of that unraveled in 2025 as the three year contract came to an acrimonious end. CCGNJ wanted the number back, while NCPG argued it had spent millions building out a coordinated national solution to a national problem. In September, the New Jersey Superior Court ordered NCPG to cease and desist using the number and not to interfere with CCGNJ’s use of it.

According to the American Gaming Association, in 2024 almost half a billion dollars was spent on responsible gaming in the US. Even nonprofits have aspirations. The millions flowing from the NFL and NBA, or operators like FanDuel or DraftKings, have made helping people with gambling problems big business.

Brand recognition is often the primary gateway for these multimillion-dollar grants. This has increasingly led to turf wars between various responsible gaming groups, resulting in a fragmented system where two national helplines compete for not only the same callers but the same funding.

At the time, there were legitimate fears that callers outside New Jersey could face delays, confusion, or gaps in service. This is precisely the opposite of what responsible gaming frameworks are supposed to deliver as legalized gambling and prediction markets continue to expand.

Why the 1-800-RESET is a Reset

The introduction of 1-800-My-RESET is the NCPG’s direct response to the uncertainty that surrounded the dispute over 1-800-GAMBLER. NCPG chose to launch its own distinct national helpline identity, one that it owns outright and can build for the future on, instead of leasing one from a state affiliate, even one with a storied 40 year history.

Calls to this number will route to that national infrastructure that they have spent millions building out over the past few years and will connect individuals with more than two dozen accredited support centers all across the country.

The NCPG has been careful not to frame this as a replacement strategy. 1-800-GAMBLER will continue to remain operational and run by the CCGNJ. They state the goal as redundancy, not competition or disruption, with multiple access points, which will make the process of reaching out for help more resilient.

But beneath phrases like redundancy and resilience it's hard not to see the financial reality. A large and growing national organization had its leased ”front door” slammed shut by a state affiliate, which creates an existential threat to its funding pipeline. 

By resetting the public’s perception of where they can reach out for help, they ensure continued access to millions in corporate and government support, but at the cost of a fragmented dual national solution that will see increased redundant infrastructure and effectively split national reach and duplicate many administrative costs. 

Adoption of the new number will also be uneven at first. Helpline language is deeply embedded across the whole of the gaming ecosystem, from printing on lottery tickets, to casino pamphlets, to sportsbook apps. Updating all those references will not only take time, but in many cases, regulatory approval. 

Beyond just the logistics, the launch of 1-800-MY-RESET signals a broader shift. As Gambling becomes a national business, it is only natural to see the infrastructure designed to address its harm grow and evolve with it.

As states continue to legalize sports betting and online casinos, as well as the unknown impact from prediction markets, which may end up being legal in all 50 states, we can expect that gambling harm and the money set aside to mitigate it will also continue to accelerate.

In that sense, the reality becomes clear, if gambling is now going to operate nationally, and access to help must as well, who will be the designated gatekeeper? In a half billion dollar ecosystem, that answer may come down to whose number is printed on the next billion lottery tickets or gets displayed at the bottom of those Super Bowl Ads.