When questioned about the decision, Mental Health and Addictions Minister Dan Williams’ office referred inquiries to Recovery Alberta, one of the newly created public health agencies replacing Alberta Health Services.
In an emailed response, Recovery Alberta spokesperson Jessica Conlin explained that the decision was made to refocus funding on direct addiction services.
"These funds are being reallocated to focus on front-line delivery of services to directly support Albertans in their pursuit of recovery," Conlin stated. She added that Albertans can still access help at any time by calling the Addiction and Mental Health Helpline.
However, she did not address whether other addiction-related organizations were facing similar cuts.
The Opposition NDP’s mental health and addictions critic, Janet Eremenko, condemned the move, arguing that it was irresponsible for the government to cut funding to gambling addiction resources, especially given that Alberta earns over $2 billion annually from gambling revenue.
"They have a fundamental responsibility to step in and create a tangible way for people to point to a specific line item in the budget that says this is what they're doing to address and prevent problematic gambling and gambling addiction when they're making that kind of revenue from the gambling itself," Eremenko said.
Her concerns are exacerbated by Alberta’s growing interest in legalizing private online gambling, a move that would mirror Ontario’s approach.
"Online gambling is a big tidal wave on the horizon, and these kinds of cuts are going to mean that the consequences of that are going to be bigger than ever," she warned.
Top Canada casinos
