LOS ANGELES (CNS) — Los Angeles County reported 1,192 new cases of COVID-19 and nine more deaths Sunday, bringing the county's totals to 221,950 cases and 5,254 fatalities.

Both numbers were smaller than usual, but officials with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health said the decrease reflects a weekend reporting lag. The department anticipates receiving backlog cases from the state electronic lab report, but data sources that track other key indicators, including hospitalizations and deaths, are not affected by the reporting issue.

Good news continued on the hospitalization front, with 1,357 confirmed cases currently hospitalized and 32 percent of those in intensive care. That's a decrease from Saturday, when 1,393 people mere reported hospitalized and 33 percent in ICU.

It continues a downward trend that has led to cautious optimism that the county is successfully slowing the impact of COVID-19. The seven-day rolling average of daily hospitalizations is down about 25 percent from the 2,026 average at the end of July.

Testing results were available for nearly 2,078,000 individuals as of Sunday, with 10 percent of all people testing positive.

"To the many families suffering a loss due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we keep you in our thoughts and prayers," Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer said. "It is a collective responsibility shared between everyone including each resident and business to slow the spread of COVID-19. We need collaboration and unity to do those things we know reduce transmission of the virus so we can re-open with as much safety as possible."

"Because there are so many people infected with COVID-19 and spreading the virus who have no symptoms, and we ourselves could be infected and unknowingly spreading the virus, each of us needs to make sure we do everything we can to avoid being close to others not in our household. With the warm weather, this can be challenging as we seek to find places to go that offer relief from the heat," she continued. "As much as possible, however, we still ask everyone to stay home and limit activities outside to what is essential — work, getting groceries and medicine, and medical visits."

“If you do go to the beach or the park, please remember to keep at least six feet of distance from those you don't live with, wear face coverings at all times when out the home, avoid crowded places, and wash your hands frequently. We need to work together to lower our case rate so we can get our children back to school and more people back to work.''

Given the ELR delays, the department urged any person with a positive lab result to call 1-833-540-0473 to connect with a public health specialist who can provide information about services and support. Residents who do not have COVID-19 should continue to call 211 for resources or more information.