More than $12 million in lottery winnings went unclaimed in Massachusetts in fiscal year 2022, a nearly $4 million increase over the previous year, a State Lottery spokesman said.
While most of those funds go back into the state’s general fund to be distributed to local cities and towns, a portion is provided to the Office of Problem Gambling Services and the Department of Public Health for gambling addiction services, said Marlene Warner, CEO of the Massachusetts Council on Gaming and Health.
About 2% of adults residing in Massachusetts have a “full-blown gambling disorder,” and another 8.4% of people have experienced some form of problem gambling in the past year, Warner said.
