Players may have to wait just a bit longer for a Louisiana casino reopening. The first phase of the state opening up after the Coronavirus will begin on May 15th, but gambling facilities will not be allowed to welcome guests until the following Monday, May 18th. However, just because they are allowed to reopen does not necessarily mean they will reopen. There’s concern among casino operators about not only being limited to 25% capacity. They also can only have 25% of their games operating. David Strow, spokesman for Boyd Gaming, which owns Sam’s Town, said the company is excited about…

The shut down looks to be coming to an end down south, as five Arizona casinos open this Friday. That’s the day the governor’s stay-at-home order expires. The casinos will still have social distancing protocols in place. In total, five Tribal casinos plan to open. They include Harrah’s Ak-Chin Casino, the Fort McDowell Casino, the Vee Quiva Casino, and Wild Horse Pass and Lone Butte casinos. Visitors to the casino will be temperature-checked before entry. Employees and guests with temperatures over 100°F will not be allowed to enter. Plexiglass shields will be installed at counters and floor markings will encourage…

For those of you watching the steps toward a Las Vegas reopen this will be exciting news! The first phase of the process has begun, and it’s a week ahead of schedule! The Nevada Gaming Commission approved guidelines proposed by the Control Board, and Governor Steve Sisolak announced that the first phase would begin May 9th, a week ahead of the planned May 15th. Those guidelines included strict social distancing measures that were highlighted by increased distance at slot machines and a limit on how many players can sit at a given gaming table. Under these rules, all poker games…

Don’t look now, but the Wynn Las Vegas and their sister site Encore could actually open as early as this month… if (and it’s a big “if”) Nevada’s phased reopening schedule moves along quickly. Wynn Resorts CEO Matt Maddox said that when the time is right the company will probably reopen both of its Vegas Strip resorts together in a limited capacity. Maddox added that reopening ultimately would depend on public health benchmarks set by state officials and by Wynn’s reopening plan that was released in April. “Clearly, we won’t be opening large mass gathering places — nightclubs or convention…

All across America, casino workers are asking for more protective equipment from employers, and for new cleaning and social distancing policies in place before they agree to return to work. Two of the country’s largest casino worker unions, Unite Here and the Culinary Workers Union, representing workers from casinos in Las Vegas, Atlantic City, New Orleans and Biloxi, Mississippi, held a video news conference Tuesday to call for all workers to be tested at the casinos’ expense before returning back to their jobs. They also laid out detailed health and safety protocols unique to each worker’s job. The calls came…

Great news, as Montana casinos reopen after the state lifted Coronavirus restrictions on casinos, restaurants and bars! Those establishments had been closed for seven weeks but were allowed to open their doors yesterday. That was the date identified by Governor Steve Bullock which would allow casinos to reopen while observing proper social-distancing. There are still limits on crowds and servers are wearing masks and gloves. And not all establishments reopened immediately, and some industry workers expressed concern that interacting with customers puts them at risk. Churches and retail shops in Montana opened last week as the stay-at-home order was lifted,…