These 4 Illinois Casinos Could Reopen Friday

Editor’s Note: Please visit our Live Updates page for the most recent information on the opening of casinos in Illinois.

 

 

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to the closure of casinos in Illinois since November, but a few are predicted to reopen as early as Friday.

Last month, JB Pritzker, the Governor of Illinois, posted the following tweet:

I am carefully hopeful as I observe initial progress signs in various regions of our state. Therefore, any region that fulfills @IDPH metrics for mitigation reduction can transition out of Tier 3 of our mitigation plan on January 15th. pic.twitter.com/dXn0d2X91C

From Governor JB Pritzker (@GovPritzker) on January 6, 2021

The state is divided into 11 healthcare regions. When a region advances to Tier 2, among other regulations, its casinos are allowed to operate at 25% capacity and must shut down by 11 p.m. at the latest.

The following are the requirements to transfer from Tier 3 to Tier 2:

a 12 % or lower positivity rate for at least three times out of every seven days
• At least 20% of medical and ICU beds are available for a minimum of three consecutive days.
• Hospitalizations have been lower for at least seven out of the previous ten days.

Four games in areas that satisfy the requirements

According to NBC Chicago data, as of Monday, regions 2, 3, 6, and 7 have met the criteria to transition from Tier 3 to Tier 2.

In one of those regions, four games exist in Illinois. They include:

• Par-A-Dice Casino located in East Peoria, Region 2.
• Hotel & Casino Jumer’s (Region 2)
• Region 7’s Hollywood Casino Joliet
• Region 7 – Harrah’s Joliet

At the time of writing, this isn’t the conclusion. Nevertheless, if the figures are correct, these four games should be permitted to continue on Friday.

A few more areas are nearby.

Games are also available in areas 4, 5, 8, and 10.

Below is a list of the remaining games in Illinois, along with their specific regions:

DraftKings at Casino Queen ( Place 4 )
• Metropolis (Place 5.) Harrah’s
• Hollywood Casino Aurora (Place 8)
• Grand Victoria Casino in Elgin (Location 8)
• Argosy Casino Alton (Place 4)
• Region 10 Rivers Casino

As of Monday, January 12, each of those areas was located in the following position:

Place 4

Positivity Rate: 11.9 % ( decreasing ).
• Reliable Hospital Beds: 11.9%
• 19.1% of ICU Beds are steady.
• Admissions: Screening for four consecutive nights

Currently, Place 4 is notably under the threshold for hospital beds and marginally under the threshold for ICU beds. However, its positivity rate has decreased to levels that are considered acceptable.

Four casinos are the furthest from reopening.

Place 5.

Positivity Rate: 9.9 % ( increasing )
• Hospital beds are increasing by 35.2%.
• ICU Beds increasing by 19.6%
• Admissions: Have been decreasing for the past four days.

The fifth place is just under the threshold for ICU beds, indicating that it may soon meet the criteria. Given this, it is advisable to monitor the rising rate of positivity closely.

Location 8

Positivity Rate: 10.4 % ( falling )
• The percentage of hospital beds is increasing at 22.8%.
• 23.2% of ICU Beds are steady
• Admissions: There has been a decrease in nine of the past ten weeks.

Despite Region 8 fulfilling all the necessary requirements, there has only been one instance where over 20% of the hospital beds were available.

If the situation continues for at least two more days, Region 8, where Hollywood Casino Aurora and Grand Victoria Casino Elgin are located, should be able to resume operations.

Location 10 & nbsp,

10 % ( decreasing ) Positivity Rate
• The percentage of hospital beds is increasing at 18.8%.
• ICU Beds increasing by 23.3%
• Admissions: Have been declining for the past ten periods.

Region 10 just misses the required percentage for medical base.

New terrible stretch for Illinois gambling

Despite the thriving online sports betting industry, Illinois casinos have been subjected to two extended closures since March due to the pandemic.

The initial instance occurred between mid-March and July 1. From July to November, the majority of casinos were operating at half capacity (Tier 1), although there were instances when some were only able to function at a quarter capacity.

In an effort to halt the spread of COVID-19, Pritzker halted all games in mid-November.

Despite assurances that some casinos will be able to reopen, we might still not be done with casino closures.

Despite the previously mentioned areas now qualifying for reopening, they are neither surpassing nor falling short of the required levels.

Stay updated with our most recent Illinois casino news here.