Steve Niebler, director of the Adams County Office of Aging, was reported as saying that if slot machines come to Pennsylvania, the added slots revenue could leave state senior citizen programs seriously affected. Profits from lotteries provide aid for programs, such as Pace, covering prescription costs for the elderly. The assumption is that if the residents of Pennsylvania have slots, they will be less likely to play the lottery. Without lottery money, state senior programs would be at a loss for funds.
According to the Department of Revenue, the lottery is likely to be impacted by slots. However, in other states that also added slots gaming, the lottery actually benefited from the presence of slot machines. In West Virginia, for example, lottery sales increased in the two years after slots were authorized.
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