New coronavirus cases are causing some gambling venues to reconsider their operational plans
Despite all the measures implemented for poker rooms to be able to reopen, two states might be considering a second closure due to the stay of the COVID-19 pandemic. Both Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak and California Governor Gavin Newsom have threatened the possibility of another shutdown after a little more than two weeks of seeing everything back in action. This could be a hard impact on gambling venues that invested many resources in adapting to the new circumstances and are finding great success after the reopening.
Sisolak gave a hint about this possibility on his Twitter account; however, he didn't give any specifics nor explained which businesses he is considering giving orders to shut down again. "If statewide trends do not improve or get worse, I will not hesitate to take any action necessary to protect the public, including reinstituting previous restrictions. I am currently reviewing all the data to determine potential next steps," wrote the governor.
Similarly, Governor Newsom gave a similar speech though it was more direct and specific. He spoke yesterday to give a briefing on the COVID-19 situation and said that at least seven counties, including LA County, would most likely need to step back their reopening because of the massive spike in cases. He didn't mention specifically the five recently reopened Los Angeles poker rooms, but it is almost certain that they will be forced to close temporarily if he makes such a decision. "We are considering a number of other things to advance and we will make those announcements as appropriate," said Newsom, "Augmenting the orders and advancing even more restrictive ones." Things in California are getting a bit hectic with over 222,000 cases of COVID-19 – the second-most in the country – and 100,000 of those cases are located in Los Angeles County.
