Mississippi casinos to reopen May 21, other states cool their heels

Mississippi’s casinos have been cleared to reopen starting May 21, but Kansas, Massachusetts, Missouri and Ohio casinos will have to wait a while longer.

On Thursday, the Mississippi Gaming Commission (MGC) announced that the state’s commercial casino operators can choose to reopen at 8am on May 21, just ahead of the Memorial Day weekend. Gov. Tate Reeves ordered the casinos closed on March 16 as the state tried to limit the spread of the COVID-19 coronavirus.

On Friday, the MGC will release guidelines detailing the rules that casinos will have to follow to ensure safe gambling, including social distancing policies that will limit how many slot machines can operate and how many individuals will be allowed at gaming tables.

Mississippi has 29 commercial casinos (some land-based, some riverboat) and three tribal casinos, although the latter aren’t subject to the MGC’s oversight. In 2018, Mississippi’s casinos generated combined revenue of $2.14b, the seventh highest gaming state in the nation.