Hawaii and Illinois warn against traveling to Las Vegas due to the Delta variant.
With the rise in COVID-19 cases in Las Vegas, officials in various regions are urging their people to either wear masks or avoid traveling to the Nevada resort destination.
Recently, health officials from the Hawaii State Department of Health Kauai District stated that their contact tracing investigations showed that a significant number of new cases were traced back to individuals who had visited Las Vegas. The district mentioned that the popular indoor activities and crowded indoor spaces at Las Vegas pose a high risk for the spread of COVID-19, despite the lack of a mask requirement.
The district didn't prohibit travel, but advised anyone planning a trip to get fully vaccinated beforehand. Upon reaching Las Vegas, they urged both vaccinated and unvaccinated residents to follow Hawaii's prudent rules, which demand wearing masks in busy indoor areas.
On the other hand, Lt. Gov. Josh Green of Hawaii was quite frank about the situation. In a video clip broadcasted by Las Vegas TV station KLAS, Green, who is both a doctor and the state's liaison to medical providers, had a frank warning for those not getting vaccinated but wanting to travel.
"If you're not getting vaccinated and you're just itching to jump on a plane, you're taking a huge risk", Green said, "You're going to casinos or restaurants where most people aren't wearing masks. That's what's going to happen. You'll definitely catch COVID."
Schooldays earlier, in an attempt to prevent the surge of Covid-19 cases in Southern Nevada, the Clark County Commission voted unanimously to enforce a mask requirement for workers in indoor public areas. This came shortly after the Southern Nevada Health District urged individuals, regardless of their vaccination status, to wear masks in crowded public settings.
Nevada Advisory in Effect in Illinois
Hawaii's not the only state giving its residents tips on going to Las Vegas.
Since Friday, a travel advisory announced on Tuesday by the Chicago Department of Public Health is in place for Nevada. The advisory asks unvaccinated city residents traveling to Nevada or unvaccinated travelers coming from the state to either show proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken within the last 72 hours or quarantine for ten days after arriving.
The advisory exempts vaccinated people from any of the above steps.
Nevada was one of four states and the US Virgin Islands added to Chicago's advisory this week. The other states added were Florida and Louisiana. Previously, Chicago officials had established an advisory for Illinois and Arkansas.
A state lands on this list when its average daily infection rate surpasses fifteen infections per 100,000 people per day.
Last week, the head of Public Health for Los Angeles County recommended that people reconsider traveling to Nevada or other states with high positivity rates during a presentation to the California County's Board of Supes.
NGCB Upholds Mask Mandate
The increasing number of COVID-19 cases in Nevada and other hot spots is mostly due to the prevalence of the delta variant. This variant, which is 225% more transmissible than the original strain that began the pandemic almost 17 months ago, is responsible for the current outbreak.
When the Clark County Commission deliberated on the new mask mandate, some commissioners questioned whether the mandate should be expanded to include all gaming licensees, not just casinos, as enforcing an order with so many establishments might be difficult.
The day following the implementation of the mandate, the Nevada Gaming Control Board issued a statement, confirming that it would apply to all gaming licensees. Board Chair J. Brin Gibson stated that they anticipated the pandemic would continue to evolve, even after restrictions were lifted, and that counties would need to act if another wave erupted.
"The Board is fully supportive of the Southern Nevada Health District and the Clark County Commission in its mask mandate for employees in Clark County," Gibson said, "The Board will ensure compliance with this requirement in Clark County within its areas of jurisdiction."
On a separate note, the city of Henderson, Nevada, is using ‘Vegas’ as an acronym for “Vaccinated and Enjoy Safe Guards” in a marketing campaign in hopes of convincing people to get vaccinated.
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