These 4 Illinois Casinos Could Reopen Friday

Written By Joe Boozell on January 12, 2021 – Last Updated on January 16, 2021

Editor’s Note: For the latest information on the opening of casinos in Illinois, please check out our Live Updates page.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Illinois casinos have been closed since November, but some are expected to reopen as soon as Friday.

In the previous month, Governor of Illinois JB Pritzker shared the following tweet:

I am cautiously optimistic as I see early signs of progress in different areas of our state. Any region that meets the @IDPH criteria for reducing restrictions can move out of Tier 3 of our mitigation plan on January 15th. pic.twitter.com/dXn0d2X91C

On January 6, 2021, Governor JB Pritzker tweeted:

The state is segmented into 11 healthcare regions. Once a region reaches Tier 2 status, its casinos are permitted to operate at 25% capacity and must close by 11 p.m., in addition to other regulations.

To move from Tier 3 to Tier 2, you must meet the following requirements:

A minimum of 20% of medical and ICU beds must be available for at least three consecutive days.
Hospitalizations have decreased for at least seven out of the past ten days.

Four games in areas that satisfy the requirements

Based on NBC Chicago’s data, regions 2, 3, 6, and 7 have satisfied the requirements to move from Tier 3 to Tier 2 as of Monday.

There are four games available in Illinois in one of the regions.

The Par-A-Dice Casino is situated in East Peoria within Region 2.
Jumer’s Hotel and Casino in Region 2
Hollywood Casino Joliet in Region 7
Harrah’s Joliet is located in Region 7.

As of now, this is not the final decision. However, if the numbers are accurate, these four games may be allowed to proceed on Friday.

A few more areas are nearby.

Games can be found in zones 4, 5, 8, and 10 as well.

Listed below are the remaining games in Illinois, along with their corresponding regions:

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

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

Place 4

Reliable Hospital Beds: 11.9%
19.1% of ICU Beds are stable.
Admissions will be screened for four nights in a row.

At present, Place 4 has a shortage of hospital beds and is slightly below the threshold for ICU beds. Nevertheless, the positivity rate has decreased to acceptable levels.

The four casinos that are the farthest away from reopening.

Place 5.

The number of hospital beds is growing by 35.2%.
The number of ICU beds has increased by 19.6%.
Admissions have seen a decrease over the last four days.

The fifth place is on the verge of reaching the threshold for ICU beds, suggesting that it could soon meet the requirements. Therefore, it is recommended to closely monitor the increasing positivity rate.

Location 8

Hospital bed capacity is growing by 22.8%.
23.2% of ICU beds remain consistent.
Admissions have decreased in nine out of the last ten weeks.

Although Region 8 has met all the required criteria, there has been only one occurrence where more than 20% of hospital beds were available.

If the current circumstances persist for another two days, Region 8, home to Hollywood Casino Aurora and Grand Victoria Casino Elgin, will be able to reopen for business.

Location 10 & nbsp,

Hospital bed capacity is increasing by 18.8%.
ICU bed capacity is rising by 23.3%.
Admissions have decreased over the past ten periods.

Region 10 falls just short of the necessary percentage for medical base.

New terrible stretch for Illinois gambling

Although the online sports betting industry is thriving, Illinois casinos have experienced two prolonged closures since March as a result of the pandemic.

The first occurrence took place from mid-March to July 1. Between July and November, most casinos operated at 50% capacity (Tier 1), with some operating at only 25% capacity at times.

Pritzker suspended all games in mid-November in an attempt to stop the spread of COVID-19.

Even though some casinos may be able to reopen, there is still a possibility that more closures could occur in the future.

Although the previously mentioned areas are now eligible for reopening, they are currently meeting the required levels without exceeding or falling below them.

Keep up to date with the latest Illinois casino news by checking in here.