CORONAVIRUS deaths and ICU use in Orange County are down (Shutterstock)

There was good news and not-so-good news in Friday’s report on the state of the coronavirus pandemic in Orange County.

According to the county health care agency, the latest tallies (drawn from Thursday’s totals) show that deaths and the number of patients being treated in intensive care units for COVID-19 declined to levels not seen in months.

Deaths went from four to two, and ICU use dropped from 16 to 14.

However, the number of confirmed new cases increased to 159 from Wednesday’s report of 87, and hospitalizations climbed from 89 to 96.

In Orange County, the total number of coronavirus cases recording since the pandemic began is at 547,126, of which 536,966 are considered recovered. The death total is at 6,886.

Nationally, The New York Times reports that – over a 14-day period – new cases have fallen by 8 percent and deaths by 43 percent. In California, new cases are down 28 percent and deaths by 52 percent over a similar period, according to Los Angeles Times.