A journalist who delved into the world of chips, VLTs and casinos is warning that gambling is becoming an epidemic in Canada.
Rob Csernyik, the author of “A Losing Hand,” examined the various jurisdictions across Canada for the book including Newfoundland and Labrador.
He says stronger public awareness is needed to reduce the human cost.
Recent evidence in Ontario shows a trend of related emergency-room visits, self-harm risks, and acute harms among younger men. But, not all provinces have that data, Newfoundland and Labrador being one of them.
(VOCM News)
Csernyik says when we legalize and expand gambling, there’s always a risk, and if you don’t know the numbers, you don’t know the risk.
“Newfoundland and Labrador is the only province without a physical casino.”
Csernyik says getting information from this province was not easy.
“For a long time, the line was that they were not going to open an ALC online casino but they did so quietly, and when I asked them why, they kind of tiptoed around it,” says the author, who’s from Cape Breton.
“It’s important to know that they keep expanding without having important information.”
