Decrease in Ontario's COVID-19 hospitalizations appears to be slowing

Recent decreases in COVID-19 hospitalizations in Ontario appear to be slowing, new data released Tuesday suggests.

According to the Ministry of Health, 512 people in hospital have tested positive for COVID-19, a 2.7 per cent drop from last Tuesday. For context, a week before that, COVID-19 hospitalizations dropped from 808 to 526 -- marking a decrease of 34.9 per cent.

Meanwhile, Ontario's wastewater data is beginning to tick upward after a steep downward slope began at the end of April.

Intensive care occupancy remains steady with six more patients seeking care due to the virus since a day earlier, bringing the number of admissions to 116.

Forty-three per cent of patients hospitalized and 57 per cent of people in the ICU who tested positive for COVID-19 are receiving care for the virus. The remaining people who tested positive were admitted for other reasons.

Officials are reporting five net new deaths due to COVID just a day after the province logged no additional fatalities for the first time since early May.

The province is reporting 460 new COVID-19 cases, but health officials have warned that number is an underestimate due to restricted testing.

With 8,385 tests processed in the last 24-hours, Ontario is reporting a test positivity rate of 6.9 per cent.