CDC Says Casino Patrons in Las Vegas Can Ditch Face Masks

After a year of battling COVID-19, the CDC and Nevada gaming regulators have allowed casinos in Las Vegas to return to normal and ditch face coverings – under specific conditions.

Nevada Readies to Ditch Masks in Casino Properties

This Thursday marked an important shift in the tide against COVID-19, with the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention announced that individuals who have been fully vaccinated against the virus would be able to carry on with their lives without the need to wear facial coverings indoors or outdoors.

Following the announcement, Nevada’s gaming regulators pitched in and stated that casinos would be able to set their own mask policies and gain full freedom in how they want to manage the now receding COVID-19 wave. The Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) said that its own ruling coincided with Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak’s decision to allow the CDC to make the calls on mask usage.

“The updated guidance on masks issued today by the CDC as effective immediately in Nevada,” Gov. Sisolak added, signaling a stronger return to normalcy in the Silver State and its gambling heart. This means that starting from Thursday afternoon, and there is no longer a need to wear face masks on gaming floors if you have been vaccinated or if the property you are visiting has issued an updated statement that you do not have to.

The CDC explained that individual guidelines might end up being more restrictive than the ones suggested by the Centers, but those must still be complied with. Gaming operators and casinos in Las Vegas will ultimately be the ones to decide how they wish to proceed in the situation.

Each Gaming Operator to Manage Mask Wearing on Their Own

Regulators are withdrawing from overseeing every square foot of casino operations in terms of COVID-19 measure compliance, it seems, with Control Board chairman Brin Gibson announcing that the watchdog would no longer try to determine the vaccination status of individual patrons and pass the baton onto gaming properties instead.

This news comes in the context of even better news for the casino industry as many properties have been cleared to return to a 100% capacity earlier this week, making May the first week in over a year that Nevada has been able to restart its industry in full and without having to comply with exhausting anti-COVID-19 protocols.

Over 18 properties have been allowed to restart operating at 100% capacity, which marks an important milestone for the entire industry and crowns the efforts to tackle the spreading of COVID-19 in the country, which has carried on for over a year now. Wynn Resorts has made sure to pounce on the opportunity and issued a statement on Thursday that guests are not required to wear masks on-site if they have been fully vaccinated.

Wynn has previously provided employees with guidelines, asking employees to either vaccinate or be prepared to comply with a weekly testing procedure.