LAREDO, Texas — At the tourism board meeting, members raised heat and medical-preparedness concerns for large youth tournaments held in July and August and urged staff to expand information given to visiting teams and hotels.

A board member recounted a personal dehydration episode after event setup and urged the CVB and partners to make clinic and emergency-room options clearer to visiting coaches and families. The member said some clinics will not accept Medicaid or certain insurances, and recommended providing a list of nearby facilities and what insurances they accept.

Staff said the CVB already provides a packet to coaches that lists medical facilities, retail needs and local support and confirmed that events include water and cooling stations staffed by fire and parks departments. For tournaments with multiple advancement rounds, staff said games are scheduled early or late in the day and include breaks when heat is intense. Staff also suggested distributing health-and-safety information to hotel lobbies so visiting teams who do not come to the downtown CVB office still receive guidance.

Board members encouraged continued coordination with fire, police and parks staff, and asked staff to consider additional signage at fields and a list of nearby clinics with intake/insurance information for teams traveling from other cities. No formal directive was adopted at the meeting beyond the board’s request that staff continue outreach and include medical-resource information in team packets and hotel materials.