Update: Face coverings or masks are now required at all Nevada casinos and most other venues open to the public.
The Nevada Gaming Control Board announced on Wednesday that all patrons at a table or card game must wear a face covering. This includes players and spectators that are within six feet of the table. There is an exception if the table game or poker table has a partition that completely separates the players from each other and the dealer.
From the Nevada Gaming Control Board Document:
Licensees must require patrons to wear face coverings at table and card games if there is no barrier, partition, or shield between the dealer and each player. This requirement applies to table and card game players, spectators, and any other person within 6 feet of any table or card game.
The release went beyond the mask requirement. It also outlined policies related to social distancing and the need for casinos to actively offer guests masks. Safety is reiterated throughout the eight-page report.
Most Las Vegas casinos do not have partitions at table games. The exceptions I have seen are all MGM Resorts properties, Tuscany, and half the tables at Wynn, Encore, Ellis Island and El Cortez. MGM Resorts casinos required craps and roulette patrons to wear masks due to the lack of shield between players and dealers at the table.
Any casinos that does not have shielding at table games will need to install it or require patrons to put on a mask when within six feet of the table. The directive covers all Nevada casinos.
Las Vegas mask usage before directive
On Monday, we covered the mask usage at 25 Las Vegas casinos. The range started at 12 percent and went as high as 72 percent of Las Vegas casino patrons wearing masks.
Caesars Entertainment casinos had the highest mask usage in our survey. The company was the only one in Las Vegas we found that required all table game players to wear masks before it was required by Nevada regulators.
