Bichat Hospital: the ANJ seeks solutions
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13 Jun 2025 •
Reading time: 2 minutes On 12 June, a rare moment took place in the corridors of the addiction and psychiatry department at Bichat-Claude Bernard Hospital in Paris. Isabelle Falque-Pierrotin, Chairwoman of the French National Gaming Authority (ANJ), paid a visit. A visit that goes beyond mere protocol.
By addressing the health professionals on the front line of addiction, the ANJ is taking a resolutely human and scientific approach to the regulation of gambling. For while the legal framework is essential, so too is an understanding of clinical realities.
Defining addiction: between the clinical and the regulatory
One of the highlights of the meeting was the medical definition of pathological gambling. How do you recognise an at-risk gambler? What are the clinical signs of gambling addiction? These often complex questions were the focus of discussions between the ANJ and specialists.
Isabelle Falque-Pierrotin reminded us of the legal obligations imposed on gaming operators. They have a duty to put in place systems to prevent, identify and support excessive gamblers. But these tools still need to be in line with medical reality.
That’s what this direct consultation with the field is all about: fine-tuning regulatory systems on the basis of the practical experience of carers. For the ANJ, the fight against excessive gambling cannot be effective without close collaboration with healthcare professionals.
A major public health issue
With the proliferation of online gambling offers and the widespread use of certain practices (sports betting, poker, scratch cards), gambling addiction has become a public health issue.
According to the latest estimates, more than 1.4 million people in France have a gambling problem, including around 400,000 pathological gamblers. This figure is rising steadily, particularly among young adults.
The role of the ANJ is therefore crucial. But without the support of healthcare professionals, prevention cannot be fully effective.
A new era in gaming regulation?
The presence of the President of the ANJ at the Hôpital Bichat may well mark a turning point in France’s regulatory strategy. By choosing to listen to the medical world, the ANJ is stepping outside its institutional perimeter to become part of a more global approach.
This morning at Bichat was just one stage in the process. But it says a lot about how attitudes to pathological gambling are changing. In a world where solicitations are omnipresent, the ability to protect individuals without stigmatising their practices is becoming a major challenge.The ANJ has understood this: to regulate effectively, we need to understand deeply. And for that, there’s nothing like the views of doctors, psychologists and all those who deal with the distress of gamblers on a daily basis.