We are into the final days of our effort to gather input on what people would like to see in a permanent #1OctoberMemorial. For this effort to be successful, we need to hear from as many as possible. The goal is to create a lasting memorial to remember the victims, honor the survivors and first responders and showcase the resilience of our Las #Vegas community in the wake of the 2017 tragedy. Please go to https://tinyurl.com/1octsurvey by Sunday, March 14 to take the survey and please share with anyone you think would like to offer their opinion.

For additional information, please visit www.ClarkCountyNV.gov/1OctoberMemorial. 

The 1 October shooting at the Route 91 Harvest Festival was a tragedy that Las Vegas will never forget. Now, work is underway to create a lasting memorial to remember the victims, honor the survivors and first responders and showcase the resilience of our community. Our 1 October Memorial Committee is seeking the public’s input on what it would like to see in a permanent #1OctoberMemorial.

Please go to https://tinyurl.com/1octsurvey by March 14 to take the survey. This is the first step in an ongoing community-wide conversation about the best way to memorialize what occurred. There will be additional opportunities for public input, which will include town hall meetings and likely additional surveys so that we can create a Memorial to Remember. For additional information, please visit www.ClarkCountyNV.gov/1OctoberMemorial.

Stop, Swab & Go, a 14-day #COVID19 testing blitz, starts Monday, Aug. 31. Convenient, free, drive-thru testing is available at 3 locations:

• Fiesta Henderson Hotel and Casino, 777 W. Lake Mead Pkwy.

• Texas Station Hotel and Casino, 2101 Texas Star Ln.

• Sam Boyd Stadium, 7000 E. Russell Road, 89122

Appointments are not required, but are strongly encouraged. Register online at www.DoINeedaCOVID19Test.com. Each site will operate Monday through Friday, 6 a.m. to 2 p.m., through Sept. 18, providing self-administered nasal swab tests. The goal: To administer 60,000 tests! The hotel testing sites will be set up in parking garages. The Sam Boyd site will have a drive-thru site set up in its parking lot, and will offer an additional walk-up testing area inside the stadium’s concourse. Free face coverings will be offered. Registrants will need to provide an email address to be notified when their test results will be available online, approximately 3 to 5 business days after their test. To access their results, they will need to set up a username and password on the www.DoINeedaCOVIDTest.com website. Please get tested and help us slow the spread of the #coronavirus so that we can reopen the Las #Vegas economy sooner.

After engaging County residents and several months of optimization, Clark County has debuted a new user-focused website , allowing easy access to critical information and the ability to conduct a host of online transactions.

The new www.ClarkCountyNV.gov website is optimized for mobile usage and comes at a time when the ability to access County services online is essential to residents’ health and safety. The design goal was to drive community engagement with an intuitive, modern website.

Common functions that can now be accessed through www.ClarkCountyNV.gov are:

•             Applying for and renewing a business license;

•             Booking park/recreational facilities;

•             Paying traffic tickets;

•             Paying property taxes; and

•             Watching County Commission meetings.

“I’m excited to launch this new, more mobile-friendly website that will allow our residents to more easily and efficiently access County services,” said Clark County Commission Chairman Marilyn Kirkpatrick. “The site is also more modern, fresh, colorful and use-friendly.” The website was last updated in December 2010.

“Our website is an important means of accessing County services and information,” said Commissioner Michael Naft, a vocal advocate for the update. “It should be easy for residents and visitors to transact business online using their phones and this new website is definitely a step in the right direction, providing efficiencies for our customers and for the County itself at a time when resources are limited.”

“We are committed to increasing opportunities for self-service by providing more County services online,” said Clark County Chief Information Officer Nadia Hansen. “Residents and visitors of Clark County need an accessible, searchable website that is optimized for use on mobile devices and allows easy access to vital County information and services.”

With a rapid increase in the number of COVID19 cases in Las Vegas and Clark County occurring in the Hispanic community, County leaders, health experts and partners announced a new outreach effort called “Esta En Tus Manos (It’s In Your Hands)” to boost understanding among Hispanic residents of all ages about the need to wear face coverings in public places, visit free testing sites, and find resources to help protect themselves and their families from the virus.

The Spanish-language initiative includes a website at estaentusmanosnevada.com to serve as an informational hub for the Hispanic community to find testing locations, health care and other resources to help people dealing with impacts from the virus. The Esta En Tus Manos campaign also will include social media outreach, radio and TV public service announcements, posters, fliers and other materials. Officials also are working with a wide network of supporting community leaders, businesses, churches, Spanish-language media outlets and other organizations to help carry the messages of Coronavirus, education and support into the Hispanic community.

The number of COVID-19 cases is steadily rising in Clark County. As of Tuesday, the health district is reporting 15,095 cases, including 4,801 in the Hispanic population. Hispanic residents in Clark County have the highest rate of COVID-19 infections of any racial or ethnic group. The rate of COVID-19 infections is more than two times higher for Hispanic people compared to non-Hispanic whites.

Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak has signed a directive with a new requirement for Nevadans and visitors to cover their nose and mouth with a mask or face covering when in public. Exceptions apply, such as kids and those with certain medical conditions.

This mask directive goes into effect on Friday. Businesses have the right to ask a patron to leave if they are not following this directive. Detailed guidance is available online at NVHealthResponse.nv.gov.

Las Vegas, Clark County and Nevada have all seen an increase in COVID19 cases recently and Governor Sisolak says he doesn’t want to have to take steps backward by imposing stronger restrictions. He also stressed its not just on the businesses or state and local government – it’s on all Nevadans to do their part to help in these latest steps to fight Coronavirus.

The Nevada Secretary of State’s office has announced election officials have started mailing 2020 primary election ballots and that voters can expect to receive their ballot in the mail in the next 2 weeks. Due to COVID19, the June 9 primary is being done as an all-mail election. Clark County and our Election Department are supporting this effort.

For the 2020 primary election, active registered voters will automatically receive a mail ballot. Instructions for voting by mail are included with each ballot. All ballots also come with a secure pre-addressed, postage-paid ballot return envelope that must be used for returning the ballot.

Voters are reminded to sign their ballot return envelope before dropping it in the mail. In-person ballot drop off will also be available should a voter be unable to return their ballot by mail. While limited in-person voting, both during the early voting period and on Election Day, will be available for same-day registration and information updates, election officials highly encourage voters to take advantage of the opportunity to mail in primary election ballots rather than voting in person. 

 Here are key dates leading up to the June 9, 2020 primary election:

May 12 – Close of standard voter registration. This is the last day to register to vote or to update existing registration information by mail or at a voter registration agency (such as the Department of Motor Vehicles).

May 21 – Last day to register to vote or update existing registration information online at www.RegisterToVoteNV.gov and be eligible to receive a mail-in ballot in the primary election.

May 22 to June 4 – Those registering to vote or update existing registration online at www.RegisterToVoteNV.gov are eligible to vote in the 2020 primary election but must vote in person.

May 23 to June 5 – In-person early voting is available in all counties. For the health and safety of everyone, voters are encouraged to vote by mail rather than in person.

June 4 – Last day to register to vote or update existing registration information online at www.RegisterToVoteNV.gov and be eligible to participate in the 2020 primary election. After this date, voter registration will only be available on June 5 and June 9 at an in-person polling location.

June 9 – PRIMARY ELECTION DAY – Ballots returned by mail must be postmarked by June 9, 2020. Ballots returned in person at a drop-off location must be received by 7:00 pm on June 9, 2020. Also, on this day, there will be limited in-person voting available for those not able to vote a mail ballot. 

Wynn Resorts and University Medical Center of Southern Nevada have announced a unique partnership which will allow all employees of Wynn Las Vegas to have access to testing for the COVID-19 virus at no cost to the employee.

UMC’s investment in a new lab has increased the capacity to perform thousands of tests per day. Wynn employees will initially have direct access to Coronavirus testing at UMC designated locations in Las Vegas beginning the week of May 4th.

As the Company works with government officials to determine an opening date for Wynn Las Vegas, it will set up on-site testing in coordination with UMC for employees. This will ensure that Wynn employees that would like to be tested will have access to reliable and accurate COVID-19 testing well in advance and leading up to the opening of the resort.

Wynn also announced that 70 team members from its Wynn Teleservices Call Center will assist the Clark County Commission with its ramped up contact tracing efforts.

Governor Steve Sisolak today announced today Nevada along with Colorado has joining California, Oregon and Washington in the Western States Pact – a working group of Western state governors with a shared vision for modifying stay at home orders and fighting COVID19.

There are three principles that serve as the foundation for the agreement:
• Our residents’ health comes first. As home to nearly one in five Americans and gateway to the rest of the world, the West Coast has an outsized stake in controlling and ultimately defeating Coronavirus.

• Health outcomes and science – not politics – will guide these decisions. Modifications to our states’ stay at home orders must be made based off our understanding of the total health impacts of COVID-19, including: the direct impact of the disease on our communities; the health impact of measures introduced to control the spread in communities —particularly felt by those already experiencing social disadvantage prior to COVID-19; and our health care systems’ ability to ensure care for those who may become sick with COVID-19 and other conditions. This effort will be guided by data. We need to see a decline in the rate of spread of the virus before large-scale reopening, and we will be working in coordination to identify the best metrics to guide this.

• Our states will only be effective by working together. Each state will work with its local leaders and communities within its borders to understand what’s happening on the ground and adhere to our agreed upon approach.

As part of the Western States Pact, the Governors commit to working together toward the following four goals:
• Protecting vulnerable populations at risk for severe disease if infected. This includes a concerted effort to prevent and fight outbreaks in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities.

• Ensuring an ability to care for those who may become sick with COVID-19 and other conditions. This will require adequate hospital surge capacity and supplies of personal protective equipment.

• Mitigating the non-direct COVID-19 health impacts, particularly on disadvantaged communities.

• Protecting the general public by ensuring any successful lifting of interventions includes the development of a system for testing, tracking and isolating. The states will work together to share best practices.

The Nevada Attorney General’s Office and U.S. Attorney Nicholas A. Trutanich have announced the formation of the Nevada COVID19 Task Force. The Task Force is comprised of local, state and federal investigators and prosecutors with significant experience in handling complaints and cases related to general fraud, heath care fraud, Medicaid fraud, insurance fraud, workers’ compensation fraud and cyber crime, among others. Together, they will share information and resources to protect Nevadans from those using the Coronavirus to take advantage of consumers. 

The Nevada Attorney General’s Office and U.S. Attorney’s Office caution residents to be wary of potential scams such as:

• Diagnosis Testing Scams: Scammers offer fake COVID-19 testing kits, particularly door-to-door.
• Treatment/Cure Scams: Scammers offer fake or unproven treatment regimens that are particularly dangerous because they have the potential to do more harm than good.
• Charity Scams: Virtually every time there is a disaster or emergency, scammers set up fake charities to solicit donations that they then spend on themselves.
• Overinflated prices: The Task Force will use every tool available to hold sellers accountable who unlawfully use the COVID-19 pandemic to unreasonably inflate prices.
• Investment Scams: Scammers make false claims about tests, cures and other matters related to COVID-19 in order to entice victims to make investment decisions based on those false claims that allow the scammer to steal money and assets from Nevadans.
• Cyber Scams: Scammers send victims emails related to COVID-19 that appear to be from the victims’ banks, health care providers, the World Health Organization, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and others for the purpose of obtaining the victims’ personal identifying information and exploiting it for the scammers’ own benefit.
• App Scams: Scammers are creating and manipulating mobile apps designed to track the spread of COVID-19 to insert malware that will compromise users’ devices and personal information.
• Insurance, Workers’ Compensation and Medicaid Fraud: Businesses and government agencies are not immune to scams. They should also be vigilant to ensure scammers do not take advantage of their businesses or customers during this pandemic.
• Economic Impact Payments (Stimulus Checks): Scammers pretend to be government officials offering false payments in order to obtain personal identifying information including social security and bank account numbers.

If you have been victimized by any crime related to the COVID-19 pandemic, please report your experience to the Attorney General’s Office at ag.nv.gov/Complaints/File_Complaint and the National Center for Disaster Fraud (NCDF) hotline at 1-866-720-5721 or by e-mailing the NCDF at disaster@leo.gov.