Monday, March 30, 2020 | 1:01 p.m.
Jim Murren
A fund established to respond to the coronavirus crisis in Nevada has collected $4 million in donations and pledges in the last 48 hours, Jim Murren, head of a task force leading the state’s recovery efforts, said this morning.
The COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund will make grants to help the state react to the crisis, provide assistance and supplies to first responders and health care providers, aid nonprofit groups, and help Nevadans impacted by the pandemic, officials said.
Murren, head of the Nevada COVID-19 Response, Relief and Recovery Task Force, said the public-private partnership will initially focus on obtaining more virus testing kits and personal protective equipment, such as surgical masks and gowns.
“The task force is built to support the state, our health professionals and community partners as they battle in the public health arena to contain the spread of this disease,” Murren said this morning during a video news conference.
A total of 1,008 cases of coronavirus have been identified in Nevada, where 15 virus-related deaths have been reported. All but one of the fatalities have been in Clark County.
Murren, who was tapped by Gov. Steve Sisolak last week to lead the task force, said members named today would hit the ground running and use their connections to source medical supplies.
“This is not the time for résumé building. I wanted task force members that have specific skill sets, that are going to work 24/7, that can work collaboratively...” Murren said.
Task force members are: State Sen. Yvanna Cancela, D- Las Vegas; Rob McBeath, president of OptumCare Mountain West Region; Doug Cannon, president and CEO of NVEnergy; Alex Dixon, president of PureStar, West Region; Steven Menzies, president of Focus Cos.; Scott Nielson, president of Nielson Consulting; and Phil Satre, board chairman of Wynn Resorts.
Murren said the task force will take a multiprong approach: Find critical medical supplies as close to home as possible to address immediate needs, then reach out to national and international sources for supplies in greater numbers.
“Companies based in Nevada can reach directly into China, South Korea, the UAE, Europe, North and South America, and we’re doing that right now,” said Murren, who recently stepped down as chairman and CEO of MGM Resorts International.
“In my case, I’m calling people I’ve known 10 or 20 years and I’m saying, ‘Look, you like Las Vegas, you like coming to Nevada, we need you. We’ve helped you, you need to help us,’” he said.
Murren said the private sector can move faster than state or federal agencies. “And so, we are acting quickly now,” he said.
Las Vegas gaming companies have already donated hundreds of thousands of surgical masks and gloves for first responders and hospital workers.
Wynn Resorts recently donated 600,000 surgical masks, 240,000 N95-equivalent respirator masks, 500,000 pairs of surgical gloves and 2,000 medical gowns to law enforcement and health care facilities.
Caesars Entertainment has donated 200,000 pairs of gloves and 4,000 protective masks to University Medical Center and 3,500 masks to Dignity Health. And MGM has donated more than 100,000 surgical masks and thousands of respirators masks, gloves and other equipment, Murren said.
The Nevada Community Foundation is serving as fiscal agent for COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund, which was jump-started with a $10,000 donation from the Duncan and Irene Lee family. Duncan Lee chairs the foundation board.
As result of the partnership with the task force, the original fund will be merged with the new COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund that has significantly enlarged the scope of eligible beneficiaries to which funds may be distributed, the foundation said.
To donate to the COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund, click here.
