• Rivers Casino Closed
• Are Pa Casinos Closing Again
• Pa Casinos Shut Down
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• Pa Casinos Shutting Down

Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf enacted an executive order that forced his state’s brick-and-mortar casino industry to shutter for the second time since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Casino Pittsburgh, Mohegan Sun Pocono, Parx Casino, Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course, and Presque Isle Downs & Casino. Closing down Penn National’s casinos will affect 18,000 employees.

According to a press release from the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, the state’s 13 casinos were forced to close at 12:01 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 12. They will remain closed until at least 8 a.m. on Monday, Jan. 4, 2021.

Harrah’s Philadelphia, Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course, Lady Luck Nemacoin, Live! Casino Pittsburgh, Meadows Casino and Racetrack, Mohegan Sun Pocono, Mount Airy Casino Resort, Parx Casino, Presque Isle Racetrack and Casino, Rivers Pittsburgh, Valley Forge Casino and Resort and Wind Creek Bethlehem were all affected by the order.

Rivers Casino Philadelphia was already closed on Nov. 20 after the city issued a mandate that shut it down.

The mandates come as COVID-19 cases are rising all over the country and regulators are claiming that these measures are being taken as a public health safety measure.

“The Board is continuously monitoring developments and will update the licensees and the public as frequently as possible with any new development,” said Gaming Control Board Executive Director Kevin O’Toole in a statement.

Wolf shut down the state’s brick-and-mortar gaming industry in mid-March as the virus made its first wave through the country. The state’s casinos reopened in mid-late June, as it one of the states that took a more cautious approach to its reopening process. It is one of the few states that is forcing its casinos to close again.

Rivers Casino Closed

1. Pennsylvania casinos shut down in March. Since then, lost gaming revenues have exceeded $466 million. Whether May is a bust remains to be seen, as the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board waits for cues from the state on when to reopen. On April 16, President Donald Trump and his team unveiled a multi-phase plan to restart the economy.
2. Pennsylvania casinos to shut down amid surge in coronavirus cases “We need to slow the spread right now to save lives,” Governor Tom Wolf said. United States Gov. Tom Wolf announced the steps as COVID-19 cases have soared in the commonwealth.
3. Pennsylvania Gov. Wolf to shut down indoor dining, high school sports, gyms and casinos for 3 weeks, sources say This is the story of the American virus The Game Awards 2020: Start time, nominees.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom recently enacted stay-at-home orders for two regions of his state, which encompasses about 87% of the state’s population. The order closed all commercial casinos in Southern California and the San Joaquin Valley.

Wolf’s move comes shortly after casino executives penned him a letter asking him to keep the industry open, according to a report from PennLive. Through just the first two weeks of the first shutdown, operators lost nine-figures worth of revenue and will likely see similar trends this time around.

Are Pa Casinos Closing Again

The Keystone State, just like many other states across America is still reeling from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. Things seemed to have been getting back on track for a moment but that was short-lived thanks to a surge in infections.

Last week, Pennsylvania’s Governor Tom Wolf who had at about the same time tested positive for COVID-19 announced some new far-reaching restrictions on various businesses across the states. The mitigation order is part of the state’s efforts to contain the new wave of infections and one of its most notable takeaways is the ban of commercial gambling.

All 12 casino operators in the state closed and halted all of their activities from midnight on Saturday, December 12. They will then remain closed for at least three weeks with the earliest possible reopening set for 8:00 am on Monday, January 4.

The activities that have now taken to the sidelines until January 4 include indoor entertainment, in-person dining, bars, gyms, and fitness facilities. For some kinds of indoor and outdoor events, the government of Pennsylvania will be introducing new capacity limits.

According to the governor, the decision is very necessary especially because it is “a bridge to a better future in Pennsylvania.

“With these measures in place, we hope to accomplish three goals. First, stop the devastating spread of COVID-19 in the Commonwealth. Second, keep our hospitals and healthcare workers from becoming overwhelmed. And third, help Pennsylvanians get through the holiday season — and closer to a widely available vaccine — as safely as possible.”

Thankfully, other forms of gambling that the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) regulates will not be affected. These include online casino-type games, fantasy contests as well as sportsbooks.

Pa Casinos Shut Down

Some Hopes Thanks to the Vaccine

Perhaps the biggest development in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic is the new COVID-19 vaccine from Pfizer. The wait is finally over as the much-anticipated vaccine has finally made its way to the United States.

Pennsylvania, like all of the other states in the country, already has plans in place – this is clearly outlined in a COVID-19 Interim Vaccination Plan that has been crafted by state Health Secretary Dr. Rachel Levine. First in line for the vaccine will be health care workers, first responders, critical workers, people in long-term care facilities, and people with high-risk conditions. Eventually, everyone else will be able to get the vaccine after the supply increases in the coming weeks or months.

New Casinos In Illinois

Needless to say, this brings back some hope regarding when things will get back to normal and some businesses can go back to operating as they did before the pandemic.

Pa Casinos Shutting Down

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