MGM Resorts welcomes decision to stop COVID-19 testing

Businesses in the United States are finally going to enjoy some reprieve. This is mostly to the fact that the country will no longer require COVID-19 testing for international travelers entering the country. This should lead to an increase in flights going to Las Vegas, Nevada, and MGM Resorts CEO Bill Hornbuckle is happy about the prospect of normalcy returning to the city.

Following clearance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the United States has been welcoming travelers without requiring COVID-19 clearance and testing since Sunday at 12:01am ET. Hornbuckle is confident that this decision will help the casino gaming industry in Nevada begin to recover.

MGM is one of the bigger, if not the biggest employer in the Silver State as of right now. Hornbuckle said that travel and tourism will be positively impacted by the developments, making for larger revenues for the companies in the city and the region in general. International travel remains one of the industry’s toppriorities with Las Vegas and other cities appreciating the opportunity to attract well-heeled overseas customers.

Ow that this has happened, the land-based casino sector feels in a good position. Much lobbying came from the US Travel and Tourism Advisory Board and the State of Nevada as well, Hornbuckle admitted, but it was ultimately CDC’s decision to move forward and make this happen.

Even without international travelers, Nevada has been doing particularly well. Domestic flights have been restored and gamblers and tourists have flocked back. Regardless of the fact, international travelers often come with some big spenders, which has made casinos determined to lure these people back. Asian VIPs have been a particularly lucrative segment and many people from Oceania have been flying in as well.

Lack of regional casino hubs, or largely restricting the existing ones in Macau, for example, has made it so that Asian travelers are now eager to come to Las Vegas, albeit not too eager to undergo extensive testing, various COVID-19 mandates, and other disruptors. The US Travel Association, too, is confident that this new move will make it so that more people are visiting the US and boosting the country’s long-term recovery.

One of the revenues to increase for casinos in Las Vegas is baccarat which has been pegged to the ability of Asian high rollers to fly in and play the game they love. Overall, MGM Resorts is not the only company welcoming the change – every casino resort on The Strip is surely relieved.

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