State’s death toll rises by 76

Massachusetts health officials on Tuesday reported that 76 more people have died from the coronavirus as the number of confirmed cases increased by 873.

Coronavirus hospitalizations continued to drop, a decrease of 61 patients, bringing the Bay State COVID-19 hospitalization total to 2,472. The statewide hospitalization total has declined by 1,090 since May 5.

The 76 new deaths bring the state’s COVID-19 death toll to 5,938, the state Department of Public Health announced. The three-day average of coronavirus daily deaths has dropped from 159 at the start of May to 82 now.

The state has logged 87,925 confirmed cases of the highly contagious disease, an increase of 873 cases since Monday.

At least 2,472 people in Massachusetts are currently being hospitalized for the coronavirus — and 672 patients are currently in the ICU.

The highest peak of Massachusetts coronavirus hospitalizations was 3,965 on April 21.

An additional 7,741 tests have brought the state’s total to 476,940 tests. The sevenday weighted average of the state’s positive test rate has declined from 16.6% on May 1 to now 9.9%.

Middlesex County has the most confirmed cases in Massachusetts with 19,504 cases, followed by Suffolk County with 16,825 cases.

The state reported 18,510 residents and health care workers at long-term care facilities have now contracted the virus, with 344 facilities reporting at least one case of COVID-19.

Of the state’s 5,938 total coronavirus deaths, 3,617 deaths are connected to long-term care facilities.

The U.S. has recorded more than 1.5 million coronavirus cases — the most cases in the world. More than 91,000 Americans have died, and more than 283,000 have recovered.

New York is the country’s hot spot with more than 28,300 deaths and 352,000 cases.

There are more than 4.8 million confirmed cases worldwide and more than 321,000 deaths. More than 1.6 million people have recovered.