screenshot
Gov. Steve Sisolak speaks during a virtual press conference, Thursday, April 16, 2020.
Published Thursday, April 16, 2020 | 6:45 p.m.
Updated Thursday, April 16, 2020 | 7:12 p.m.
Officials are working on plans to reopen Nevada following more than a month of a statewide closure out of concerns for the coronavirus, Gov. Steve Sisolak said Thursday.
While a plan is being devised, Sisolak said there wasn’t enough information to declare a specific date for nonessential businesses to open. At the very minimum, the closure that began March 17 will last through the end of April. He also repeatedly stressed that a reopening of businesses does not equate to an immediate return to normalcy.
“As your governor, I assure you we're working on the strongest plan possible to reopen our business and our communities, one that will focus on putting the health and safety of Nevadans first and sets us up for a strong economic recovery,” Sisolak said.
Multiple criteria are being considered in developing a plan, including health risk assessments and a review of testing capacity, Sisolak said. A report earlier Thursday indicated casino companies are contemplating having table-game dealers wear masks and have personnel check patrons’ temperatures before they enter a property.
The companies have long said they would follow Sisolak’s guidance in taking precautions.
“If we reopen and we’re not ready with the best plan possible, all the incredible work you’ve done will have been wasted and will run the risk of hurting our economy even more,” Sisolak said. “As soon as we finalize our state-specific plan to reopen, I will be right here, telling you exactly how we are going to do it.”
The closure has caused significant financial hardship to many sectors as a record 300,000 Nevadans have filed for unemployment benefits and the state has lost an estimated $2.2 million daily in gaming-tax revenue. That forced Sisolak to ask state agencies to propose cuts to their budgets.
“No one wants to get back to business more than I do,” Sisolak said. “We are a proud state, we are a hardworking state.”
Mark Pandori, the director of the Nevada State Public Health Laboratory, said testing will be more important as cases decline to determine how much risk still exists and to gather data on how many people were or are infected.
“We have to now address … the public health function of testing,” he said. “This is about gathering intelligence. This is about finding out where the enemy is.”
In the coming weeks, Pandori said, many public and private labs will start automated testing. Antibody tests, he said, will also be available eventually. These tests will be able to determine whether a person has developed antibodies for the coronavirus through a blood sample, which will determine if the person has been exposed to the virus.
“The tests are a reality and they’re on their way,” Pandori said.
Sisolak’s announcement came hours after President Donald Trump said he presented the nation’s governors “a phased and deliberate approach” to restoring normal activity in places that have strong testing and are seeing a decrease in COVID-19 cases.
“You’re going to call your own shots,” Trump told the governors Thursday afternoon in a conference call, according to an audio recording obtained by The Associated Press. “We’re going to be standing alongside of you.”
The guidelines are aimed at easing restrictions in areas with low transmission of the coronavirus, while holding the line in harder-hit locations. They make clear that the return to normalcy will be a far longer process than Trump initially envisioned, with federal officials warning that some social distancing measures may need to remain in place through the end of the year to prevent a new outbreak. They largely reinforce the plans already under development by governors, who have the primary responsibility for public health in their states.
“We’re starting our life again,” Trump said. “We’re starting rejuvenation of our economy again.”
Sisolak’s shutdown orders have brought constant criticism from Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman, who has publicly broken with the overwhelming scientific evidence that said shutdowns ease the burden on the country’s health care system and keep vulnerable populations safe.
Sisolak said he did not know where Goodman was getting her advice but that he would “stack up” state medical experts against any others.
“Some people are more concerned with the business side of this than the human toll that this virus is taking. The human toll is more important to me,” Sisolak said. “I am listening to … medical experts, to my scientific experts, and determining what is in the best interest in this community.”
There have been 3,321 positive cases of the coronavirus in Nevada, out of 35,504 tests conducted. The disease has caused 142 deaths statewide.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
