Arizona adults are increasingly at risk of gambling-related problems, argues Elise Mikkelsen, Director of the Division of Problem Gambling at the Arizona Department of Gaming.
With 30% of adults gambling every week, there has been a tangible increase in gambling frequency, and Mikkelsen has noted that the increase in activity and overall people gambling was something that has caught the professional by surprise.
Arizona Experiences More People Gambling, At Risk of Gambling Harm
“I am kind of surprised by the dramatic increase in frequency at this point in time,” she said, adding that three years after legalization, “we’re already seeing a vast increase in some of these activities.”
“When new activities are introduced, when new products are introduced, there’s a certain amount of time when everybody’s having a great time, as they should be. And fallouts tend to not show up for quite some time,” she said.
As to why, Mikkelsen attributes a lot of it to one thing in particular – accessibility. “For me, it’s all about accessibility. We have options like we’ve never had before,” she said. As gambling has become more accessible, awareness of problem gambling help resources has also grown, with more people becoming conscious that such options exist.
Prevention is key, but it must come as part of a broader healthcare picture, argues Mikkelsen, who said:
“Rather than just saying, you know, we need to worry about people and their gambling, we need to worry about their gambling as part of their entire health picture. We need to find people who are willing to partner with us to get this a part of everyday screening in public health and become more of a part of the behavioral health framework.”
To put things in perspective, a recent study by the Arizona Department of Gaming has found that 84% of adults have been gambling in the past year, and that nearly 20% of adults are now in the moderate to high risk category.
Sports betting became legal in Arizona in 2021, and the market has grown quickly since – licensed operators took in more than $670 million in bets in May 2026 alone.
The survey also found that public support for the state’s treatment services is high, and that awareness of available help resources has increased.