Plexiglas is placed around slot machines, gaming tables, and other areas at the Lone Butte Casino in Chandler on May 14, 2020. Casinos under the Gila River Indian Community were planning to reopen during the COVID-19 pandemic with new safety measures on May 15, 2020. (Photo: Thomas Hawthorne/The Republic)
Movie theaters across Arizona are empty.
Gyms have locked their doors.
And restaurants are filled with taped-off tables, welcoming half of the customers they would usually see for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
But casinos, which operate on tribal land in Arizona, are open for business, despite health experts warning that customers are engaging in a high-stakes gamble: risking their health along with their money.
Casinos are the only business designated as high-risk by Arizona’s health department that remain unrestricted amid the recent COVID-19 spike in the state.
But some public health experts say they shouldn’t be. Dr. Shad Marvasti, director of public health at the University of Arizona College of Medicine Phoenix, said Arizona is “not close to control in terms of our numbers” and that all high-risk activities should be temporarily put on hold.
“As long as our percent positive cases are as high as they are, I don’t think any…
Source link
CHECK OUT: Top Travel Destinations
EXPLORE OUR: Travel Guides
