Lounges must comply by January 1
The majority of Macau’s 47 casinos and gaming halls seem to be in no hurry to have their smoking lounges tested and approved by city’s Health Bureau.
According to a new report from the bureau, as of August 31 just 12 gaming venues had filed a total of 88 requests for approval of smoking lounges. Among the 88 requests, 10 smoking lounges in two gaming venues have been approved by the city’s authorities, said officials. The first approval announced in April was submitted by casino hotel Ponte 16, a joint venture between SJM Holdings and Success Universe Group. The second was Melco Resorts & Entertainment’s Studio City resort.
All gaming halls in the city must pass muster with the Health Bureau’s new, stricter air quality standards. Starting in January, only authorized lounges will be permitted to operate; the applications must be submitted by September 28 to meet the New Year’s deadline, the bureau has warned.
In July 2017 Macau lawmakers approved a bill to ban tobacco use in VIP rooms, the last bastion of unlimited smoking in the casino business, GGRAsia reported. The new rules took effect last January, but casinos were given a full year to set up dedicated smoking lounges for high rollers.
Inside Asian Gaming reports that 1,140 people have been cited for illegal smoking in casinos in the first eight months of the year, representing 30.1 percent of all prosecutions. More than 87 percent of smokers prosecuted inside casinos were tourists.
