Gaming stocks by and large didn’t feel the love on Wall Street yesterday, trending slightly downward, not counting 9% rallies for Station Casinos and Melco Resorts & Entertainment (the latter the only Macao operator to 
bounce back). The market recouped much of Monday’s selloff, reacting positively to the news that the federal government may raid the FEMA budget to fund economic stimulus. (An order of priorities we find slightly unsettling.) “Markets are always enamored with tax cuts, or even the hope thereof. Yesterday’s sell-off was so extreme that it’s not at all surprising to see a bounce,” Interactive Brokers Chief Strategist Steve Sosnick told the Boston Globe. However, even vague talk of tax relief for leisure industries has not been enough to juice casino stocks.
After all, tourism, their lifeblood, is being choked off. British Airways has suspended flights until April 4 and Delta Airlines is cutting service by 15%. Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker (R) is recommending travel restrictions. Baker’s state has joined neighboring Rhode Island in declaring a state of emergency. Cancellation of the Boston Marathon is on the table. If you’re planning on playing at Encore Boston Harbor, expect to have your temperature checked when you walk through the door. (Ditto employees.) Said Wynn Resorts, “Guests or employees with a temperature of 100 or higher will 
be referred to a medical professional for further screening or treatment.” It added that “We are sanitizing our slot machines, kiosks, ATMs, and all high touch points throughout the gaming floor on an hourly basis. All of our gaming supplies (eg, chips, dice, cards) are cleaned, refreshed or discarded every 4 hours.” There will even be on-call doctors. The company will also provide affected workers with access to health care. Kudos to Wynn for getting out in front of this fast-moving situation.
In Washington, D.C., revisionist history has already taken hold, with Health & Human Services Secretary Alex Azar saying, “The United States was always going to see a substantial number of cases.” And Centers for Disease Control & Prevention Director Robert Redfield is conceding that the government was slow to respond, telling Congress, “If you’re a week late, that matters.” National Institute of Allergy & Infectious Diseases boss Anthony Fauci allowed that there were “some missteps,” adding, “But that has been corrected.” Unfortunately, there is still too much magical thinking afoot, like the government official who said, “By April, you know, in theory, when it gets a little warmer, it miraculously goes away.”
Caesars Entertainment issued a lengthy, one-page statement to Caesars Rewards members, too detailed to reprise here. It doesn’t convey any new information about coronavirus and how to prevent it but, let’s face it, 
Caesars is no more privy to that data than is the Mayo Clinic. Extra hand-sanitizer stations are being deployed at Caesars properties, employees are exhorted to wash their hands more frequently and cleaning of “high-touch surfaces” is being increased. Most significantly, “We have suspended international business travel to areas with higher infection rates.” So it’s hardly business as usual at the Roman Empire. On the negative side, Caesars sent an employee home for wearing latex gloves on the job. Mixed message much?
For its part, MGM Resorts International is closing buffets—a sensible move—at Luxor, Aria, Bellagio, MGM Grand, Mandalay Bay, The Mirage and Excalibur. (Caesars might want to follow suit.) Serving up a ladle-full of food that’s been handled by God knows how many people 
seems to us like an excellent way to catch something, although we will miss the all-you-can-eat crab legs. Then again, uncooked foods are an excellent way to contract coronavirus. (Speaking of which, Washoe County has its first confirmed case, so Reno casinos should start deploying the proverbial ounce of prevention, if they haven’t already.) Back to MGM: It has closed Aureole, Mizuya and Fleur. It assures players who have rewards associated with those tenants that refunds will be issued by March 20. Players will also be alerted as soon as those outlets are reopened.
The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas was one of many resorts that said they were “actively monitoring the situation.” They’re keeping abreast of the Southern Nevada Health District but preventive measures are unclear. The Sahara, fer chrissakes, sounded more concerned, concluding, “No employee hours or positions have been adversely impacted by the situation at this time.“ Thank you, Alex Meruelo.
Wynncore has doubled the amount of staff detailed to clean slot machines, is frequently shredding card decks and has installed hand sanitizer for dealers at most table games. According to 8 News Now, the 
company “said any employee diagnosed with the virus would be placed on Medical Leave of Absence and would be paid for the duration of their physician-mandated treatment.” Bravo! Plus an attaboy for retaining an independent expert from the Georgetown University Medical Center. MGM Resorts went farther still, with a wide-ranging response that included waiving the required hours to maintain eligibility for benefits on health plans, covering the cost of coronavirus testing and medicine (co-pays included) and honoring attendance days for workers immobilized by the disease.
The Venetian issued a statement, by contrast, that sounded downright callous, saying nothing about worker safety. Calling its own approach 
“proactive but not ridiculous,” Venelazzo is increasing the number of staffers tasked to sanitize bathrooms. Sanitizers have been added to the casino floor but not on a one-per-table basis. (If this were Macao, the government would crack the whip.) Somewhat lackadaisically, Las Vegas Sands is only shredding cards “every few days” and not sanitizing them. Phil Ruffin at Treasure Island has yet to formulate a specific response. If MGM and Caesars were to get an A+ and A respectively, Sands would rate a D- and Treasure Island an F.
Some customers would agree, including those interviewed by the Las Vegas Review-Journal, who say the anti-viral measures are so low-key as to be invisible, with Canadian Dale Murray going so far as to say “They’re putting their heads in the sand.” It does not help public
reassurance that several companies, including Boyd Gaming and Station clammed up when the R-J came calling. “People are looking for cues that show the companies are caring and they’re working on their behalf,” said Indiana University tourism expert Jonathan Day. “It’s a chance to show how much you care, and create a safe place for people to relax and enjoy.”
A tone-deaf note was struck by American Gaming Association President Bill Miller. In a just-released statement, his primary concern was not with the safety of players but with getting a piece of any tax relief that Donald Trump might be promulgating. “As COVID-19 impacts 
increasingly hit closer to home, we are communicating with administration (CDC, Office of the Vice President) and Congressional leaders, including the Congressional Gaming Caucus. In these ongoing discussions, we continue to reiterate the need for gaming’s inclusion in any economic stimulus being considered … We convened a call yesterday with more than 50 government relations representatives from AGA’s membership to gauge priorities in any stimulus action, and we will work diligently to preserve industry interests over the coming weeks and months.” In other words, coronavirus: bad, no tax-deferments: worse. At least the AGA is feeling sufficiently confident to proceed with its MGM National Harbor-sited AGA Sports Betting Executive Summit, slated for March 16-18.
What about Atlantic City? The following statement was issued by Borgata: “We have enhanced our cleaning protocols that include placing hand sanitizer dispensing station in high-traffic areas, reinforcing 
proactive cleaning and increasing the frequency of disinfectant procedures. We continue to follow the CDC’s guidelines and are closely monitoring for updates.” Unfortunately the CDC has been so far behind the curve that MGM might wish to look for more-proactive sources of guidance. The Golden Nugget is going even farther, including a 21-day self-quarantine on employees who have traveled to affected areas.
Meanwhile, if you would like to hasten your mortality by more conventional means, McDonald’s has introduced a Double Big Mac. The 720-calorie behemoth comes with four beef patties. Talk about a heart attack on a plate.
* Sports betting begins today at MGM Grand Detroit and Greektown Casino, with MotorCity expected soon to follow. Industry analyst Dustin Gouker thinks it’s a promising start but no more than that: “much work 
remains, particularly with the launch of online sports betting still a year away, if Michigan is to reach its potential as a market.” Private-sector casinos should be able to cash in on March Madness but tribal ones are lagging badly. While Gouker expects an online-enabled Michigan market to eventually produce $7.5 billion in handle and $500 million in revenue, we’re a long way from that point at present. Although online regulations are still being formulated, Gouker allows that “By being thoughtful in their approach, Michigan lawmakers avoided some of the growth-stunting policies that will likely slow down states such as Illinois.”
* Eldorado Resorts is one casino lighter, having sold the Montbleu Resort Casino & Spa to fast-growing Maverick Gaming. Eldorado CEO Tom Reeg reiterated that he expects his company’s absorption of Caesars to be finished in the first half of this year. The Montbleu sale won’t close until July at the earliest.
* Thanks to the burden borne by the tourism industry, Nevada residents pay no income tax, as you well know. However, 2018 personal income per capita ($49,176) was the 22nd-lowest in America. To add insult to 
injury, sales taxes (6.85%) are the seventh-highest in the country. That’s $1,679 per Nevadan. Except for Vermont, the Silver State collects the highest excise taxes. So the wealth isn’t trickling down and the taxation is happening from the bottom up. Isn’t it supposed to work the other way around? (Figures published by 247wallst.com.) In case you’re wondering, the only other gaming-enabled states with no income tax are Florida, South Dakota and Washington State.
* Happy National Worship of Tools Day. Yes, it’s a thing.
