The number of COVID-positive patients in Riverside County hospitals declined Tuesday, decreasing from 172 on Monday to 155, while 15 additional virus-related deaths were reported.
Of those hospitalized patients, 30 were in intensive care, down from 31 the previous day, according to the Riverside University Health System.
The county’s number of COVID hospitalizations had climbed as high as 1,109 in mid-January during a surge in cases driven by the Omicron variant, but has been steadily declining since then.
The 15 virus-related deaths reported Tuesday brought the county’s total to 6,341 since the pandemic began.
Fatalities are considered trailing indicators because of delays processing death certificates, meaning some deaths may have actually occurred weeks ago, according to health officials.
The RUHS on Tuesday also reported 173 new positive COVID tests The aggregate number of COVID-19 cases recorded in the county since the pandemic began is 593,393.
The number of known active virus cases in the county was 30,293 Tuesday. The active count is derived by subtracting deaths and recoveries from the current total — 593,393. Verified patient recoveries countywide are 556,759.