Nearly one month after Las Vegas welcomed guests back, Atlantic City casinos are set to open their doors in time for Independence Day weekend. There is one big catch, however: The properties must operate at 25% occupancy. New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said casino patrons must wear face masks and undergo some level of health screening. “If any visitor refuses to comply with these simple safeguards, you will be escorted out of the casino,” the governor said. “We are not going to tolerate any knuckleheads trying to ruin it for those who want to enjoy themselves responsibly and those who…

Fears that Coronavirus would run ramped after a Las Vegas reopen seem to have been warranted and the state of Nevada has now experienced their largest one day jump in new infections. There were 379 new cases of the virus in the state, and 342 of those cases were from Clark County where Vegas is located. The virus is known to have an incubation period of approximately two weeks, and this new surge in cases hit almost exactly two weeks since the June 4th reopening of Sin City. Nevada now joins a growing list of states setting single-day records for…

The New Jersey Senate has voted to provide interest-free loans to Atlantic City casinos that made their required payments in lieu of taxes during the Coronavirus pandemic. State casinos have been closed since March to slow the spread of COVID-19 in New Jersey. Governor Phil Murphy has said he hopes to allow them to reopen by July 4th. The legislation permanently expands the tax deductions casinos can take for promotional gaming credits and reduces the tax liability for one year on gross revenue if a casino suffered revenue losses on its brick-and-mortar operations during the pandemic. Casinos also would be…

Wanna play some blackjack? Better call ahead! The Sahara Las Vegas is now accepting reservations if players want to sit at their table games! According to a news release, the Sahara’s “Take a Seat” program is the first of its kind in Las Vegas. The program will allow players to book tables up to 72 hours in advance. While the program currently offers reservations for blackjack, roulette and baccarat, the Sahara says that additional reservation games will be added in the future. The service supports households traveling together so they can make arrangements to play the same live game, the…

The Coronavirus outbreak made it feel like a long wait for Las Vegas casinos to open again. But despite a pandemic that is still spreading, the state Gaming Control Board is not reconsidering a requirement for players to wear face masks while at casinos. They only way they would enforce a face mask requirement is if new COVID-19 cases became so bad that they overwhelmed hospitals. Control Board Chairwoman Sandra Morgan said she is not looking to change direction, even as the Southern Nevada Health District’s acting chief health officer issued pleas for business customers to wear masks to protect…

When the world went on lock-down over the Coronavirus, few would have imagined it leading to cashless casinos. But that is precisely what the American Gaming Association is asking state regulators to consider. Recently, the group released a report called Payments Modernization Policy Principles which looks at the integration of cashless options for players on casino floors. According to the AGA, enabling payment choice allows casino customers the ability to supplement cash with safe and secure digital payment options on the casino floor. This not only improves responsible gaming efforts by equipping customers with digital tools to help them monitor…