The number of COVID-positive patients in Los Angeles County hospitals has dropped for six consecutive days, decreasing 146 to 3,852, according to state figures released Sunday.

The number of patients in intensive care rose 14 to 759.

Officials have said that some of these patients likely entered the hospital for other reasons and only discovered they had the coronavirus after a mandated test.

The county reported another 40 deaths associated with COVID-19 Sunday as the winter surge in infections that drove up hospital rates continues to produce high fatality rates.

Another 16,835 new positive COVID tests were also logged Sunday, according the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. The number of cases and deaths are likely to reflect reporting delays over the weekend. 

The county’s rolling average rate of people testing positive for the virus continued to fall, reaching 9.1%, down from 9.6% on Saturday and 10.3% on Friday.