Gambling is incredibly important to Nevada’s economy, but not as important as keeping it safe from the COVID-19 pandemic. For that reason, Nevada Gaming Commission (NGC) Chairman Tony Alamo has written his letter of resignation to Governor Steve Sisolak, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports.
Alamo, who has served as a gaming regulator for 12 years, is also a physician. During this critical time, he feels it’s slightly more important he apply his medical background. Alamo’s last day on the commission will be April 17. His term was originally scheduled to end on April 27, and he had earlier indicated he would not seek a fourth term on the commission.
He wrote to Sisolak that it “has been the ultimate privilege for me to be part of the regulatory process for the past 19 years for the state of Nevada, the state in which I was born and raised.” But with lives now being at stake, he noted: “it’s time for me to be a doctor.”
Alamo previously served on the Nevada State Athletic Commission, sanctioning the 2007 fight between Oscar De La Hoya and Floyd Mayweather in 2007.
Although only cutting his term short by 10 days, Alamo noted that every second counts in this important period of time. “While I intended to fulfill the last 20 days of my term, the current COVID-19 medical crisis requires that I devote all of my time and attention to my present role as chief medical director of one of the largest clinical delivery organizations in Nevada in order to battle this pandemic,” Alamo wrote. “As you are aware, the peak of the infection is theorized to occur in the next 10-14 days; and therefore, I need to direct all of my energies to the clinical and logistical planning that my primary employment demands.”
In his medical career, Alamo was chief of staff at Sunrise Hospital and Children’s Medical Center and St. Rose San Martin Hospital. He also serves as the director of the Alamo Medical Clinic, having founded that establishment in 1994.
Sisolak will be responsible for appointing a new chair and member of the commission, but he may also need to spend a bit more time focusing on COVID-19 for the current moment. As of April 7, the state has registered 2,087 cases of the virus with 71 total deaths.
Casinos will be hopeful that Sisolak can get the situation under control sooner than later. When he announced casinos would need to remain closed until April 30, stocks took a big hit, and the industry is rumored to be losing a fortune every day this stretches on.
