A 51-year-old single mother of two teenagers named Anna shared her story, revealing how online slot machine games nearly emptied her pockets. Living in Ontario, Anna found it challenging to break away from the addictive cycle even when she realized the exorbitant amounts of money she had spent and lost. She recounted her struggles at a recent Gamblers Anonymous meeting in Toronto.
Anna credited Gamblers Anonymous for being her lifeline, providing the necessary support to overcome her betting habit and resist the enticements and marketing promotions from gambling apps. She described how these apps would tempt her with large sums of money, enticing her to keep playing, even after short breaks from gambling.
Unfortunately, Anna’s experience is not unique. Recent findings from CBC News indicate a significant rise in problem gambling cases in Ontario, with a threefold increase in gambling-related suicides since the expansion of private online casino games and sports betting in 2022. The number of Ontarians exhibiting signs of gambling problems has surged to nearly 130,000, compared to around 43,000 in 2018.
This data, derived from a study by the Alberta Gambling Research Institute (AGRI) utilizing the “Problem Gambling Severity Index” and insights from Statistics Canada’s 2025 Canadian Community Health Survey, highlights a 0.5% uptick in Ontario’s problem gambling rates. AGRI researcher Carrie Shaw emphasized the normalization of gambling in Ontario due to widespread accessibility and advertising, particularly after the launch of private casinos in 2022.
The increase in problem gambling cases has also been observed in Alberta, where online gambling has been legalized alongside Ontario. Shaw emphasized the removal of access barriers with online gambling, enabling individuals to gamble anytime, anywhere using various devices. The repercussions of this accessibility are evident in the spike of gambling-related suicides reported by the Office of the Chief Coroner of Ontario post-online betting legalization.
Matthew Young, the chief research officer at Greo Evidence Insights, expressed concerns about the lack of proper monitoring and research on the public health impacts of online gambling. He criticized the changes to the Criminal Code that allowed online gambling without sufficient analysis of potential harms. Young advocated for improved monitoring and allocation of a portion of gambling revenues for independent research to mitigate addiction and related issues.
Greo Evidence Insights, formerly known as the Ontario Problem Gambling Research Centre, faced defunding in 2019 by the Ontario government. Despite calls for better regulation and support, the trend of rising problem gambling cases and associated suicides in Ontario raises alarms about the urgent need for comprehensive measures to address these issues effectively.
