The Las Vegas Sands Corporation firm is one of the leading USA-based casino and resort firms. The company is based in the state of Nevada where it has been present since its establishment back in 1988. Today, the company’s resorts including gambling-friendly facilities feature all sorts of entertainment and gaming venues alongside accommodation, exhibition venues, meeting spaces, clubs, restaurants, and of course, massive casino floors with hundreds of slots games and table games.

Las Vegas Sands Corporation owns and operates several luxurious venues in Asia and the United States including its most iconic USA-based properties located in the state of Nevada, The Palazzo and The Venetian on the Las Vegas Strip.  In Asia, the company owns and manages the iconic Marina Bay Sands facility that is located in Singapore.

Moreover, through its highly successful subordinate Sands China, Las Vegas Sands Corporation also owns several luxurious properties in the former Portuguese enclave, Macau including its Sands Cotai Central, Sands Macao, The Plaza Macao, The Venetian Macao, The Parisian Macao, and Four Seasons Hotel Macao. With so many iconic properties under its wings, Las Vegas Sands Corporation remains the biggest casino and resort-operating company in the world. When it comes to its Nevada-based properties, the company has just recently announced plans about re-opening two of its Las Vegas-based venues sometime in June.

The Venetian and The Palazzo Possibly Re-Opening in June

According to one of the company’s latest press releases, Las Vegas Sands Corporation will be initiating a special program which will test all of its workforces for exposure to the highly-contagious coronavirus. The same report also detailed that Las Vegas Sands Corporation will also recommence business operations at its iconic The Palazzo and The Venetian facilities the next month after it was forced to shut down operation at both venues for eight weeks or two months to help combat the spread of the potentially-lethal coronavirus strain which so far claimed the lives of over three hundred locals.

According to the company’s officials, Las Vegas Sands Corporation has already initiated a protective and safety scheme that regards its workforce. Following this scheme, all individuals who will be returning to work at The Venetian and The Palazzo will undergo testing which will determine whether they have been infected with coronavirus or not. Those who are not affected will return to work.

The American casino operator also revealed that the company will bear the entire costs of these testing even for those workers who are not included in the company’s medical insurance program. According to one report released by the Las Vegas Journal news outlet, Las Vegas Sands Corporation will also make these tests available to everyone who is over the age of thirteen and who live with the company’s workers who will be returning to work very soon at it’s The Palazzo and The Venetian properties.

Offering Voluntary Coronavirus Antibody Tests

According to the company’s officials, Las Vegas Sands Corporation will also offer its staff members at The Venetian and The Palazzo access to coronavirus voluntary antibody tests. The company’s officials explained that these kinds of coronavirus screenings allow individuals to uncover if they have been exposed to the highly-contagious coronavirus strain or not. The antibody voluntary testing will be administered by The PMH Laboratory Incorporated and The Wellness Group inside the company’s Sands Expo and Convention Center while all results remain confidential. Needless to say, the company’s top priority during these difficult times with the ongoing coronavirus pandemic remains the safety and health of its visitors and its workers.

Back on the 7^th of May, the main casino gaming regulator for the state of Nevada, the Nevada Gaming Commission has approved a collection of rules which have been carefully crafted in order to prevent the spread of highly-contagious coronavirus once the state’s four hundred and forty-one land-based, commercial casinos open their doors to the public after many weeks of being closed.

According to one report released by Las Vegas Review Journal, the Nevada Gaming Commission’s directives were issued several days ago by the state’s Gaming Control Board and all of the commercial casinos in the states will have to comply to these rules to resume their operations. According to these directives, re-opening commercial casinos in the state will have to halve their gaming floors’ capacity to be in line with local fire and building codes.

Moreover, these venues will only permit three players to enjoy blackjack games at a single table simultaneously. According to the same newspaper, these directives by the Nevada Gaming Commission will apply to all of the state’s commercial casinos which are eagerly waiting to re-open once the ongoing coronavirus-related safety measures including lockdowns are eased. In addition to limiting the number of players allowed at a single blackjack table simultaneously, other provisions will also include limitations to roulette and poker tables which will host a maximum of four players at the same table at the same time.

Post-Coronavirus Measures for Nevada Casinos

Needless to say, with over four hundred commercial casinos active in the state of Nevada, the state’s gambling industry is one of the most profitable, most thriving in the USA. Las Vegas is also home to some of the most iconic venues of this kind which have been thriving for years and even decades including The Mirage venue, The Mandalay Bay facility, Bellagio, Treasure Island, Caesars Palace and many others which have been negatively affected by the ongoing coronavirus-related lockdowns and other safety measures in place.

Nonetheless, all of the state’s four hundred and forty-one commercial casinos are preparing to resume their operations with certain precautions in place to prevent the spread of the highly-contagious coronavirus strain. As released by the Nevada Gaming Commission, precautions that these casinos will have to comply with resemble those measures which were previously introduced into Macau-based casinos after the end of Macau’s fifteen-day shutdown.

According to these safety precautions, all casinos including commercial casinos and resort-style gambling and hotel venues including the iconic Caesars Palace venue in Las Vegas with almost four thousand rooms are obliged to impose a strict limit of six players at one craps table at the same time. This is not everything as Nevada-based casino venues will be also obliged to follow a series of other measures that revolve around regularly cleaning all high-traffic surfaces such as elevator buttons and handrails.

Other Public Health Measures

Nevada-based casinos have been shut down since the 18^th of March when the state’s Governor Mr. Sisolak instituted a lockdown not only for casinos but also bars, restaurants, and other places that attract masses in the state. The state’s Gaming Control Board used one of its official public hearings to share more details about the re-opening measures and rules. These will probably include a variety of other public health measures that would see returning casino employees tested for highly-contagious coronavirus before returning to work. One thing is for sure, all casino employees will be provided with protective masks and gloves.

Several days ago, the United States SBA or Small Business Administration started taking applications for small businesses across the United States for loans as part of the organization’s PPP or the Paycheck Protection Program’s second phase. This particular financial relief program by the United States Small Business Administration was approved by the US federal government due to the ongoing coronavirus crisis.

As suggested by its name, the program was carefully crafted to help small business owners pay their employees and stay afloat while the USA economy is almost completely shut down. Thanks to the United States Small Business Administration program, over $300 billion was collected and made available initially, but gambling venues including Lakeside Inn Casino from the state of Nevada were not able to apply. Later on, the new funding emerged on the scene with a certain rule clarification which was in place in order to assist firms and businesses active in the casino gaming industry.

Unfortunately, the rule clarification which allowed business from the gaming industry to participate in the program came a little late for the Nevada-based Lakeside Inn Casino. The owners of the facility received a rejection note over two weeks ago and due to financial difficulties and not being able to pay its employees, the owners of the facility had no other choice but to close Lakeside Inn Casino permanently.

Lacking Federal Assistance

Formerly known as Tahoe Sky Harbor, Harvey’s Inn, Caesars Inn, and Fabulous Eddie’s Stardust Club, Lakeside Inn Casino located in Stateline, the state of Nevada was packed with one hundred and twenty-three rooms. The venue opened seventy-four years ago back in 1946 which makes it one of the oldest venues of this kind in the area. Its total gaming space covered 17,852 square feet while the facility included several other attractions including it’s the Timbers and Latin Soul Restaurants.

Over the years, Lakeside Inn Casino was renovated extensively several times including in 1957, 1969, 1972, and 1985 when the facility was rebranded to Lakeside Inn. At the time of its inception over seventy years ago, Lakeside Inn included a small casino which back in 1969 included only five table games and around one hundred slot machines. At the time, the casino floor at Caesars Inn was managed by Herbert Fisher and Grover L. Rowland. Then, three years later Harvey A. Gross purchased Caesars Inn alongside the venue’s surrounding land.

He expanded the venue and added one hundred and thirty rooms to the facility. After the death of Mr. Gross, Harvey’s Inn was renamed to Lakeside Inn and Casino. Despite its long and rich history, Lakeside Inn Casino closed its doors permanently back on the 14^th of April and one of the major reasons is the lack of federal assistance. The original Small Business Administration prohibited the Nevada-based venue from applying for a loan as the company operating the venue earns over one-third of its profits from casino gaming.

The Small Business Administration Program’s Rule Changing

Initially, the Small Business Administration program followed a twenty-five-years-old policy even though loans were in place to help small-business owners. Following the rule change, some companies from the casino gaming industry were allowed to participate, but Lakeside Inn Casino was not able to qualify. Without this much needed federal assistance, Lakeside Inn Casino closed its doors permanently. The owner of the venue Stacy Noyes said that the venue will be sold. The area of the facility is heavily focused on tourists so even if Lakeside Inn Casino received a loan, it would have been most likely forced to shut down in the following months due to lack of tourists.

As reported by several news outlets, the value of shares in several of the most prominent Nevada-based casino operators dropped significantly following ongoing coronavirus fears. Some of these venues have seen dramatically reduced numbers in tourists and visitors which consequently affected the value of shares in such companies especially after the 5^th of March. According to local news outlets, the appearance of the highly-contagious coronavirus strain in the state could cause further reductions in visitor numbers.

According to one recent report by the Reno Gazette Journal news outlet, The Silver State recorded its very first case of the coronavirus strain on the 5^th of March. This news immediately caused dramatic drops in the individual shares’ prices in local casino operator Las Vegas Sands Corporation which went down to by around 4.1% to hit just $54.88. What is even more, this decline in the value of shares was even more prominent and serious for the Caesars Entertainment Corporation company.

Coronavirus Disease Latest Situation Report

According to the World Health Organization and its latest report on the highly-infectious coronavirus strain, over 105 000 cases of infection are confirmed globally with over 3600 cases being new cases. In China, over 81 000 individuals have been infected while the COVID-19 virus has claimed the lives of over 3100 individuals just in China. According to the latest report by the World Health Organization, eight new countries have reported their first cases of infection in the past twenty-four hours.

Over one hundred countries have confirmed cases while the global risk assessment in very high.  The 2019-2020 coronavirus outbreak is a serious, ongoing global outbreak of COVID-19 or coronavirus disease which is caused by SARS coronavirus 2 or severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. The virus which was first identified in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late December of last year has been declared by world health organizations as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.

Disappointing Revenue Figures for Nevada Casino Operators

As mentioned in the first section, the most recent decline in the value of shares in several of the most prominent Nevada-based casinos has also caused disappointing revenue figures. The decline was very prominent for the Caesars Entertainment Corporation company as its stock value dropped by around 5.69% to hit just $11.27. At the same time, the Boyd Gaming Corporation company suffered a more serious 9.3% drop.

Even more serious decrease in the value of shares was recorded by the Wynn Resorts Limited company whose shares’ value dropped by around 9.5% to reach $95.62. Another Nevada-based casino operator affected is MGM Resorts International which recorded a drop of 11.5% to hit around $20.60.

According to the Reno Gazette Journal news outlet, the Red Rock Resorts Incorporated company that is responsible for the Red Rock Casino Resort and Spa venue suffered the most prominent drop back on the 5^th of March following its shares’ value dropping by around 13.8% to hit only $16.5.

The same news outlet also shared that casino operators in the state expect the casino market to remain rather volatile in the time to come due to the ongoing coronavirus outbreak. Commenting on the issues, UBS Global Wealth Management Chief Investment Officer Mark Haefele said that the unpredictive nature of the growing coronavirus threat both perceived and real is not quantifiable, at least not yet so the global response cannot be judged as insufficient or sufficient.

William Hill Expanding its Nevada Operations

William Hill, one of the leading betting sites in the United Kingdom, has been rapidly expanding their global operations, including in the regulated part of US market. The biggest news regarding their footprint in the States is that William Hill’s US division and Golden Entertainment will be expanding the scope of their sports betting relationship. Their partnership was already solid, but new provisions will make it even firmer.

Golden Entertainment is a successful gaming company that owns and operates casinos, taverns and distributed gaming in Southern Montana, Maryland, and, of course, Nevada. They’ve decided to form a long-term deal and they agreed that William Hill will manage race and sports betting operations in Nevada. Based on the previous experience these two have had, there won’t be any obstacles in their mutual efforts to improve and promote sports betting.

Experienced Industry Player

So far, this popular bookmarker had successfully managed betting operations of Las Vegas-based Charlie’s Boulder, the Aquarius Casino Resort, and Charlie’s Decatur both based in Arizona. Another sportsbook will be open soon at The STRAT, and it will also be operated by the hard-working William Hill’s team.

William Hill is also known for their full-service kiosk offers at the Gold Town and Lakeside casinos. They’ve installed gambling kiosks at about 80 Golden Entertainment’s taverns and in third-party-distributed gaming locations all over the state. This impressive sports betting operator will also operate sports gambling of Edgewater and Colorado Belle in Laughlin.

Joe Asher, the CEO for the US branch of William Hill, is proud of this expanding partnership with Golden Entertainment. He’s excited about taking over four new casino resorts locations. Their main goal is to keep sports fans satisfied and that’s what they’re constantly working on.

According to Steve Arcana, Golden Entertainment COO, the excitement is mutual. They’re positively sure that this partnership will be successful, given the fact that William Hill operates worldwide and has amazing results in the gambling business.

Awaiting New Legislation

Taking over four new operations in Nevada is the extension of this amazing partnership. Unlike Nevada, Maryland and Montana still didn’t pass legislation allowing for sports betting, so William Hill will have to wait for them to permit sports betting and then extend further services.

So far, Golden Entertainment has operated Montana’s distributed gaming operations and their task was to provide services to approximately 300 locations. They’ve also gained ownership of Maryland’s Rocky Gap Casino Resort. In this Casino Resort players can enjoy slot games and all sorts of table and lottery games.

Seems like William Hill team doesn’t plan to stop forming partnerships, which is very positive for their USA establishment. They’ve forged a partnership with Prairie Meadows Racetrack & Casino, along with Eldorado Resorts.

Prairie Meadows Racetrack & Casino is located in Iowa and it was constructed in 1992. Their casino space is impressive and they offer over 1,350 slot games, table games, 10-table poker room, bingo, and Keno. Eldorado Resorts are located in Reno, Nevada, but they’ll soon launch in Iowa.

Expanding operations in Nevada is a smart business move on William Hill’s part, and the one that stands to significantly increase the company’s profit and reputation moving forward.