Problem Gambling was the topic presented at Monday’s Marion County Providers meeting.

The meeting provides healthcare and community organizations an opportunity to inform the public of updates within their respective organizations. There is also a presenter at each meeting, and Lauren Asman with Employee and Family Resources spoke about problem gambling on Monday. Asman discussed gambling addiction and the rampant increase of sports gambling in recent years. In her presentation, she stated that Iowans wagered over $2.3 billion in 2023 on sports, with 85% of that coming from mobile apps. Asman says it’s gone far enough that some people are doing it professionally.

“There’s different levels of gamblers. In training, I learned that some people are considered professional gamblers and it’s part of their lifestyle. They do it even to write off on their taxes. It’s just really amped it up and become more common. It’s almost seen as less of a fun game and more of something that all kinds of people are doing all the time.”

The Marion County Providers meeting is held the first Monday of every month.