After several Maryland casinos announced restrictions designed to allow patrons to minimize contact with fellow customers and staff in an effort to slow the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus last weekend, Governor Larry Hogan settled the case Sunday, ordering all casinos, racetracks and off-track betting parlors to close to the public by 12:01 a.m. on Monday, March 16, and remain closed for an indefinite period.
The decision came as operators of the state’s six casinos were planning to stay open by implementing measures designed to allow customers to avoid close contact.
Over the weekend, casinos agreed to cut capacity by 50 percent, creating extra space so patrons were never sitting beside each other or within close proximity. Five of the state’s six casinos issued a joint statement saying chairs would be removed from some slots and table games to ensure patrons could stay a safe distance from each other. In the end, though, Hogan declared that would not be enough to slow the spread of the virus, which was on the rise in neighboring D.C. and Virginia as well as Maryland.
Hogan issued the order to close as the number of confirmed cases of COVID-19 reached 31 statewide.
“All casinos have complied with the governor,” said Carole Bober Gentry, managing director of communications for the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency, in an interview with GGB News, “and, working with the MLGCA, have met the deadline to close their facilities.”
“The situation continues to evolve and will escalate rapidly and dramatically,” Hogan said in a statement Sunday. “These are unprecedented actions in an extraordinary situation, but they could be the difference in saving lives and keeping people safe.”
Later on Monday, March 16—after Cordish Companies CEO David Cordish complained publicly that bars and restaurants in Baltimore remained open and packed while the casinos, including Cordish’s Maryland Live! in nearby Hanover, were closed—Hogan ordered all Maryland bars, restaurants, movie theaters and gyms to close their doors by 5 p.m. that day.
While closures for many casinos across the country were made for definite periods, Maryland’s closure remains open-ended. “This is uncharted territory for all of us,” Gentry said. “As this situation evolves, the governor needs to remain flexible and, therefore, has not set dates or deadlines. He continues to take every precaution to help slow the outbreak of coronavirus, and is trying to balance the interests of the business community with the need for safety among the citizens of Maryland.”
While the closure is open-ended, payment for idle employees may not be. Maryland Live!, which has 4,000 employees, announced that it has set aside money to pay its workers their regular salaries for two weeks during the closure.
Gentry said the state lottery also is scaling back its operations. “As a state agency, we are working closely with the governor’s office to ensure the safety of our employees,” she said. “In addition to the closing of the casinos, we have significantly reduced our on-site staffing levels by more than 60 percent, asking those employees who can work from home to do so.
“We are continuing to support our nearly 4,500 retailers who choose to remain open during this time. That said, we are starting to see softness in sales from some of those retailers, e.g., bars and restaurants.”
The lottery also offers the “Racetrax” app, which allows bettors to make mobile wagers on virtual races using all the normal track betting options.
Meanwhile, the state’s racetracks are still operating live races, but to empty grandstands. On March 10, the Maryland Jockey Club announced that live races at Laurel Park and Rosecroft Raceway will continue as scheduled, but with only limited personnel licensed by the Maryland Racing Commission in attendance.
According to J. Michael Hopkins, executive director of the Maryland Racing Commission, Laurel Park, a thoroughbred track and Rosecroft, a standardbred track, will continue live races for the foreseeable future.
Maryland permits online wagering on parimutuel racing via PC or mobile devices. According to Hopkins, there are six account wagering entities active in the state—NYRA Bets, TVG, Xpressbet, PennNational, WatchandWager, and Twin Spires ADW.
