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Former US Congressman Patrick J. Kennedy will join a player protection panel at SBC Summit Americas in Fort Lauderdale on June 10, bringing mental health and addiction policy experience to a discussion on gambling-related harm.
Kennedy will participate in the session “Building a Public Health Response to Gaming Harm,” scheduled for 11:30 a.m. on the Leaders Stage at the Broward County Convention Center.
The discussion is part of the broader SBC Summit Americas’ program, which will take place June 9-11 and bring together stakeholders from the betting and gaming sectors across North and Latin America for networking, product discovery and educational sessions.
The panel will bring together experts from public health, policymaking, psychiatry, neuroscience and the gaming industry to examine gambling-related harm from multiple perspectives. Participants will discuss how cooperation among different sectors may contribute to player protection efforts.
Joining Kennedy on the panel will be: Dr. Nathan Carroll, National Medical Director at InSite Health and a member of the American Psychiatric Association’s Council on Digital Health, Innovation, and Technology; Dr. Eraka Bath, professor of psychiatry at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA; Toby Ewing of Stanford School of Medicine, Brain Capital advisor and former executive director of the California Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission; and Paul Pellizzari, vice president of global social responsibility at Hard Rock International. The discussion will be moderated by Kevin Winters, CEO of Almond Digital Health.
Focus on gambling-related harm
The session will review statistics showing that nearly half of US adults gambled during the past year and will consider the effects that increased access to betting may have on younger audiences. Topics will include early intervention, public awareness, research, and collaboration among stakeholders in developing responses to gambling-related harm.
Kennedy served in the US House of Representatives for 16 years and became known for his work on mental health and addiction reform. He was the lead sponsor of the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act, which was signed into law in 2008 and required insurers to provide mental health and addiction treatment coverage comparable to physical healthcare coverage.
Following his time in Congress, Kennedy continued his involvement in mental health, addiction, and public health policy through initiatives including The Kennedy Forum, a nonprofit organization focused on mental health equity and systemic reform.
He also co-founded organizations including Psych Hub and One Mind, authored bestselling books on mental health and addiction, and continues to advocate for awareness, early intervention and collaboration in addressing behavioral health challenges.
Partnership initiative
The discussion forms part of SBC’s partnership with the Better Gambling Forum (BGF), a global initiative focused on evidence-based approaches to reducing gambling-related harm. Through the partnership, the organizations are working to promote practical and scalable player protection measures across North America and other regions.
“Player protection cannot be approached from a single perspective,” said Rasmus Sojmark, CEO and Founder of SBC. “Bringing together voices from public health, policymaking, healthcare, and the gaming industry is exactly the type of collaboration needed to move the conversation forward, and Patrick Kennedy’s participation adds an important dimension to that discussion.”
The panel is one component of SBC Summit Americas’ safer gambling program, which also includes a dedicated Player Protection Symposium intended to facilitate collaboration and knowledge-sharing among experts from across the Americas.
Featured speakers scheduled for the symposium include: Tom Sage, Executive Vice President of the Sports Betting Regulators Association; Christopher Hebert, Chairman of the Louisiana Gaming Control Board; Michael Soll, President of the International Center for Responsible Gaming (ICRG); Phil Sherwood, Senior Director of Responsible Gaming at PrizePicks; and Dr. Jennifer Shatley, Executive Director of the Responsible Online Gaming Association.
Attendees and industry stakeholders seeking updates on responsible gambling initiatives can also follow SBC’s Player Protection Hub, which serves as a centralized source for educational content, expert insights, and industry news related to player protection developments worldwide.
Readers interested in attending SBC Summit Americas 2026 can register using promo code YOGOPARTNERVIP through this link.