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LOS ANGELES (CNS) - Los Angeles County health officials reported 22 more COVID-19-related deaths Wednesday, along with more than 1,200 new cases.
The new fatalities lifted the county's overall virus-related death toll to 35,189.
With 1,254 new cases, the cumulative total from throughout the pandemic rose to 3,670,949. Overall case numbers are believed to be undercounts of actual virus activity, due to most people relying on at-home tests without the reporting the results, and others not testing at all.
According to the county, there were 755 COVID-positive patients in county hospitals as of Wednesday, down from 761 on Tuesday. Falling hospitalization numbers and a declining rate of admissions contributed to the county being recently moved into the "low" COVID community level by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The seven-day average daily rate of people testing positive for the virus was 5% as of Wednesday, holding roughly steady over the past week.
Masks are still required indoors at health-care and congregate-care facilities in the county, and for anyone exposed to the virus in the past 10 days, and at businesses where they are required by the owner. They are not required in other locations, but they remain "strongly recommended."