BUFFALO, N.Y. — Western New York's daily percent-positive rate of COVID-19 tests has decreased slightly over the past three days.
On Thursday, 6.01 percent of tests in Western New York came back positive. This is a decrease from Wednesday's rate of 6.33 percent, and Tuesday's rate of 6.39 percent.
The Finger Lakes have also seen a slight improvement, from 8.48 percent on Tuesday to 8.22 percent on Thursday. Still, on Thursday, the Finger Lakes had the second highest rate in the state, falling only behind Mohawk Valley at 8.74 percent.
As many people celebrated Christmas Eve on Thursday, some families were without loved ones. On Thursday, Erie County saw the greatest amount of deaths of any county in the state that day, with 14 people having died from the virus.
In the western-most counties of New York, 20 people died from the virus on Thursday, including the 14 people in Erie, three people in Genesee, two people in Cattaraugus and one person in Chautauqua.
Overall, 122 New Yorkers died Thursday from the virus.
As the state continues to look at hospital numbers while adjusting guidelines in New York, this is where hospitals stand in the three western-most regions of New York:
Western New York: 488 COVID-19 patients in hospitals, COVID-19 patients account for 0.04 percent of the population, 68 percent of hospital beds are full, 58 percent of ICU beds are full.
Finger Lakes: 875 COVID-19 patients in hospitals, COVID-19 patients account for 0.07 percent of the population, 67 percent of hospital beds are full, 69 percent of ICU beds are full.
Southern Tier: 152 COVID-19 patients in hospitals, COVID-19 patients account for 0.02 percent of the population, 56 percent of hospital beds are full, 63 percent of ICU beds are full.
Across the state, 6,950 people are hospitalized for COVID-19, with 750 people discharged and 859 people newly admitted on Thursday. Of the people in the hospital for the virus, 1,148 are in intensive care units, and of those people in the ICU, 621 are intubated.
There are currently people hospitalized for the virus in 55 of New York's 62 counties.
On Thursday, 226,560 tests were conducted for the virus in New York, and 12,446 tests came back positive.
