Riverside County COVID Hospitalizations Dip Below 300

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA — The number of COVID-positive patients hospitalized in Riverside County this week dropped below 300 for the first time in nearly three months.

COVID-19-related hospitalizations countywide dropped to 288 Tuesday, down by three patients since Monday and 17 since Friday, according to data provided by the state. The number of those patients in intensive care was 77 on Tuesday, down from 85 on Friday.

Riverside University Health System reported Tuesday that a total of 5,063 deaths from virus-related complications have been recorded in the last roughly 19 months. The death toll was unchanged since Friday.

RUHS did not provide updates Monday due to the holiday.

The fatalities are trailing indicators because of delays processing death certificates and can go back a month, sometimes longer. The unchanged death toll could be a sign that the county, like the rest of the state, has emerged from the latest infection surge and the fatalities linked to it are finally waning.

The RUHS said on Tuesday that the total number of COVID cases recorded since the public health documentation period began in March 2020 was 357,759, up by 453 infections since Friday.

Vaccination against COVID-19 is increasing: 59.1 percent of Riverside County residents 12 and older are now fully vaccinated against the virus, according to Tuesday's RUHS data.