DES MOINES - The economy may have reduced the number of gamblers seeking treatment last year, but more problem gamblers may surface later.

Mark Vander Linden, gambling treatment program coordinator for the Iowa Department of Public Health, said hard economic times wouldn't necessarily translate immediately to more problem gambling.

Generally, a delay exists between when gambling becomes a problem and when someone decides to seek treatment, he said.

"There is usually an accumulation of bad experiences," Vander Linden said.

An annual study of treatment outcomes for problem gamblers, released this week by the state health department, showed publicly funded treatment can be effective for problem gamblers.

The study, in partnership with the University of Northern Iowa's Center for Social and Behavioral Research, showed six months after treatment, 95 percent of respondents reported they had reduced or quit problem gambling.

The report showed 41 percent of people entering treatment said they had been late paying their bills; by discharge that dropped to 21 percent.

Vander Linden said figures are still being compiled for the 2009 report.

Only 66 Iowans who completed treatment filled out the survey included in the report, but a larger number sought treatment. Some of those didn't complete treatment, didn't complete the survey or were still undergoing treatment, he said.

In 2008, the number of Iowans seeking treatment dipped to 940, after 1,146 sought help in 2007. Vander Linden said the numbers for 2009 might be up over last year's.

Most gamblers seeking treatment in 2008 were white, between ages 30 to 59 and identified slots as their primary wagering activity.

The economic downturn can have a mixed effect on problem gambling.

People laid off from their jobs have more time on their hands and have access to an influx in cash in severance pay, Vander Linden said.

But Diane Thomas, executive director of the Substance Abuse Services Center, which serves 11 northeastern Iowa counties, said some Iowans may have less money to spend.

"If they don't have access to cash, they can't gamble," she said.