Although the total amount of money raised to help victims of October’s Route 91 Harvest Festival shooting is more than $20 million, it’s still not enough to aid all of those affected by the tragedy. The committee in charge of the fund has officially determined how the money will be distributed to some — but not all — of the victims.
As first reported by the Los Angeles Times, although donations to the Las Vegas Victims Fund total $22 million, because there were so many people present at the festival and consequently affected, not everyone will receive money. According to Scott Nielson, chairman of the Las Vegas Victims Fund Committee, “The overwhelming number of victims prevents us from providing individual monetary payments to those suffering psychological trauma, though we are committed to identifying mental health services to assist this critical segment of the survivor population.”
“It is our desire to recognize and honor all of those whose lives have been forever altered as a result of the horrific events of 1 October,” Nielson says, ” and we recognize the incredible needs of those experiencing psychological trauma.”
Those who do receive money from the Las Vegas Victims Fund will do so under a plan that categories the injuries or loss of life on a three-tier basis. The first tier includes deaths and permanent brain damage or paralysis; the second covers people who were hospitalized due to the shooting; and the third tier will encompass those who received medical attention that was either emergency or outpatient.
“While it is not feasible to distribute money from the Fund to all of the individuals impacted by 1 October,” the guidelines for payouts say, “it is important to recognize that the criteria set forth in this Final Protocol is by no means intended to devalue or minimize the trauma that has been experienced by a great many.” This three-tier plan is an expansion of an earlier course of action that covered even fewer victims.
Because there are so many people who need help, the committee will continue to accept donations through the end of January. Fifty-eight people were killed and more than 500 people were injured in the Route 91 Harvest Festival shooting, which took place during Jason Aldean‘s headlining set on the final night of the event, which ran Sept. 29-Oct. 1. According to the coroner’s official report on the incident, all of the victims died from at least one gunshot wound; all of the deaths were ruled homicides.
Remembering the Route 91 Harvest Festival Shooting Victims
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