According to a new poll released by a state clean air advocacy group, nearly 60 percent of Nevada voters support banning smoking in casinos. Let’s take a closer look at the potential ban and how it may impact top-rated sportsbooks.
Clearing the Air
The Nevada Tobacco Control and Smoke-free Coalition commissioned a survey that found 58% of respondents in favor of a proposed law to make all indoor workplaces in Nevada, including casinos, entirely smoke-free. However, 39% of those surveyed opposed the legislation.
The poll results, seen as a positive step by public health and worker advocates, could lead to amendments to the state’s Clean Indoor Air Act. The Act currently exempts casinos and stand-alone bars from clean air regulations.
Casinos Pushing Back Against Potential Ban
Las Vegas Strip casino operators are pushing back on the idea of banning smoking because they believe a ban would hurt revenue. Only MGM Resorts International’s Park MGM bans smoking on the Las Vegas Strip. Many MGM and Caesars casinos have nonsmoking areas, but smoking is largely allowed on the Strip.
Caesars, MGM, Wynn Resorts and other big casino players have spent aggressively to oppose smoking bans despite the impact of smoking on their employees.
The coalition pushing for the change is made up of roughly 40 public health, rural services and medical groups. It submitted the proposal to Caesars and Bally’s Corp late last year. A spokesperson said the group was impressed with how many respondents were not persuaded by the argument that a smoking ban would hurt casinos economically.
Poll results also show that Nevada voters say they view elected officials who voted for an indoor smoking ban more favorably, 55 percent to 35 percent,
Health Is a Major Concern Among Casino Workers
The University of Nevada Reno conducted a study that revealed indoor casino areas contain levels of harmful second-hand smoke that are up to 18 times higher than those in outdoor environments.
“Too many Nevada workers, especially in our state’s casinos, are forced to choose between their health and a paycheck,” said Nevada Cancer Coalition Executive Director Cari Herington. “This survey shows taking action to finally close this loophole in our state law would be well-received by voters and legislators’ constituents.
A report from The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also showed that steps to mitigate the effects of second-hand smoke are not effective.
Chief Executive of the Americans for Nonsmokers’ Rights, Cynthia Hallett said, “As the ventilation experts have repeatedly said, there is no ventilation system that can protect worker and guest health in casinos,” she asserted. “That’s why we’re working with casino workers in places like Atlantic City, Nevada, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Kansas to urge lawmakers to close the casino smoking loophole and protect their constituents from second-hand smoke.”
Nevada Could Join Growing List of Smoke-Free Casinos
Some lobbyists argue that a smoking ban would boost, rather than harm, gaming revenue. Why? Anti-smoking proponents often refer to Parx Casino, located north of Philadelphia, as it is the only full-scale casino in Pennsylvania that prohibits indoor smoking and continues to lead the statewide gaming industry. However, one could also argue that Parx has established itself as the top destination for nonsmokers, while other casinos in the Philly market divide the demographic of smokers among themselves.
Several commercial gaming states already require their casino floors to be 100% smoke-free. They include:
We’ll wait to see if Nevada (and other states) will join the list.
Calculators
