LAS VEGAS (AP) - Once businesses in the Las Vegas area start to reopen, restaurants should offer disposable menus and plates, day cares should keep children from playing or napping within 6 feet (2 meters) of each other, and hotels should remove decorative pillows and encase televisions and remotes in covers that can be wiped down, health officials said.
Gov. Steve Sisolak last week said restrictions meant to stop the spread of the coronavirus will ease gradually, with nonessential businesses like stores getting approval to let shoppers inside. Sisolak has not yet announced an opening date but said it could be May 15 if the state sees two weeks of declines in new virus cases and deaths.
He has said he’s considering allowing customers to eat at restaurants again in the first phase of reopening, as long as it can be done safely.
The Southern Nevada Health District this week released guidelines recommending restaurants switch to disposable utensils and plates when possible, disinfect tables and chairs between customers, and consider using disposable menus, a large board or an electronic menu that could be emailed to customers or accessed online.
The guidelines also suggest restaurants create a new floor plan that keeps at least 6 feet (2 meters) between tables, encourage reservations and limit people from gathering in waiting areas. Those dining in would be limited to a group of five people.
Child care facilities have been allowed to stay open, but the health district released new guidance for them.
They should require parents to pick up and drop off children outside, take the temperatures of students and staff every day and ask kids whether they have a cough or other symptoms. Children should not drink from a water fountain, their chairs and napping spaces should be kept 6 feet apart and they should be reminded to keep a safe distance from each other.
Health officials also released guidelines for “enhanced” cleaning of hotel rooms, including changing bed linens, blankets, pillows and towels between guests, covering electronics and routinely disinfecting all surfaces.
Officials have reported 276 deaths statewide from COVID-19 and more than 5,600 confirmed cases.
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death.
The notice also said affected employees’ health benefits were extended from June 30 to Aug. 31.
In other developments:
- MGM Resorts International announced that the furloughs of more than 60,000 employees could turn into layoffs. Acting company CEO Bill Hornbuckle sent a legal notice Tuesday to employees saying a tourism forecast predicts some furloughed workers might not be back for more than six months, and some not at all. Geoconda Argüello-Kline, secretary-treasurer for the casino workers’ Culinary Union, said MGM Resorts “can afford to be a socially responsible corporate leader in this unprecedented crisis instead of following the commands of its Wall Street masters who only see numbers and are blind to the people who have made this company successful.”
- Southern Nevada Health District officials said they have no evidence of a confirmed coronavirus case in the Las Vegas area in December or January, including during the CES tech show. The first suspected case was reported Jan. 29 but that person tested negative for the virus. Nevada’s first confirmed case was March 5.
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