The number of COVID-19 hospitalizations and patients on ventilators across the state continued to decline Saturday, but remained static on Sunday.

According to Friday’s data from the Louisiana Department of Health, the state data showed a pause in the downward trend of COVID-19 hospitalizations, with the number of patients remaining at 1,631 Sunday. Over the same period, the data showed the number of patients on ventilators decreased Sunday to 297, down 17 from Saturday’s total of 314.

In Region 4, which encompasses the Acadiana area, hospitalizations dropped by one Sunday to 195, down from 196 Saturday. The region’s number of ventilator cases dropped by three, from 49 Saturday to 47 on Sunday.

But Region 4’s ICU bed occupancy dropped to 157 Sunday, with 14 beds available across the seven-parish area. That put the percentage of occupied ICU beds at 91.8 percent, the lowest it has been in weeks. 

In Region 3, which stretches from St. Mary Parish east to Lafourche and north to St. Charles, 38 of 46 ICU beds were occupied as of Sunday, but that total is down by 50 from the 96 ICU beds available prior to Hurricane Ida’s passage. To the west, where Region 5 encompasses the area from Allen, Jefferson Davis and Cameron parishes to the Texas-Louisiana state line, 11 of 83 reported ICU beds were available.

The overall hospital bed occupancy in Region 4 dropped to 75 percent Sunday, with 421 of 1,687 beds available.

As of Sept. 1, the state’s seven-day COVID-19 test percent positivity was at 11.3 percent, down from 12.3 on Aug. 25. 

In Iberia Parish, the seven-day test positivity average was at 18 percent on Sept. 1, down from 21 percent on Aug. 25. In St. Martin Parish, the percentage dropped 10.39 percent on Sept. 1, down from 15.8 percent on Aug. 25 to 13.4 on Sept. 1. St. Mary Parish, however, saw a slight increase, from 16.6 percent on Aug. 25 to 17.8 percent on Sept. 1.

Iberia Parish had logged 11,952 COVID-19 cases as of Monday, an increase of 152. The parish COVID-19 death toll rose by four, to 207. In St. Martin Parish, new cases identified brought the total there to 8,021, an increase of 162. The number of deaths rose by four, to 148.

In St. Mary Parish, new cases rose to 8,121, an increase of 118 cases, with deaths rising by two, to 196.

According to Friday’s LDH update, the number of COVID-19 cases reported rose by 4,650 since Friday, to 717,224. The state also recorded 64 new deaths since Friday, bringing the total to 13,120.