SANTA ANA, Calif. (CNS) — The number of COVID-positive patients in Orange County hospitals and the county's infection rates remained stable, according to the latest data released Tuesday.

The county's number of COVID patients inched up from 95 on Monday to 98, while the number of those patients in intensive care declined from 20 to 17.

Before Monday, the last time the county had fewer than 100 COVID-infected patients was July 9, 2021, before the delta-variant surge last summer.

Also Tuesday, the Orange County Health Care Agency reported 307 new infections covering Saturday, Sunday and Monday, and 11 more fatalities associated with the virus logged over those three days. The deaths were scattered throughout the past several months with one occurring as far back as last May. 

The county's cumulative totals rose to 546,751 cases and 6,875 deaths since the pandemic began.

The death toll for March rose by four to 32, by one in February to 298 by four in January to 539, by one in December to 112. The death toll in November stands at 116, 137 in October, 204 in September, 187 in August, 32 for July, 18 for June, and 25 in May.

Of those hospitalized with the virus, 84% are unvaccinated and 86% percent of those in intensive care were not inoculated, according to the OCHCA.

The county's case rate per 100,000 people remained at 3.2, the same as Monday. The testing positivity rate remained at 1.6%, the same as Monday, and declined from 1.8% to 1.7% in the health equity quartile, which measures underserved communities hardest hit by the pandemic, the OCHCA said.