But the video poker rules are already stacked against the player to begin with.
Not necessarily. It depends on the game and its paytable. It is true that few VP games are at or close to 100% payout (over time). Most fall in the mid 90% range. That 5% house edge will take its toll in short order. The other parts of the equation are your skill level and strategy knowledge for a particular game, coupled with whatever benefits you receive for playing.
If you pick the right game with the right paytable, know the strategy cold and can play for long durations with little or no errors, coupled with a good slot club payback percentage for your play, etc... you can stay even or a little ahead in the long run. Anything can happen in the short term. You can lose money in multiple playing sessions on a machine with a good pay table or win big with your first hand on a machine with a lousy paytable.