HARRISBURG, Pa. — We're one week away from the "unofficial" start of summer and things are looking up in the Commonwealth.
COVID-19 cases are continuing to trend downward, not only in Pennsylvania but across the United States.
New reports show that cases are falling to numbers we haven't seen in almost a year.
For the first time in 11 months, according to The Washington Post -- the seven day average of COVID-19 cases has dropped below 30,000. Officials remain hopeful as vaccines continue to roll out and pre-pandemic life resumes.
Hospitalizations and deaths have also declined over the last week.
According to the Pennsylvania Department of Health there are 1,658 additional positive cases of COVID-19 in the state.
There are currently 1,250 individuals hospitalized with COVID-19. You can find more data online here.
The trend in the 14-day moving average number of hospitalized patients per day is coming down, after peaking at 2,661 patients which is slightly below what it was at the height of the Spring 2020 peak of 2,751 patients on May 3, 2020. The full 14-day moving average since the start of the pandemic can be found here.
According to the CDC, as of Saturday morning, May 22, Pennsylvania has administered first doses of vaccine to 56.1% of its entire population, and the state ranks 9th among all 50 states for first doses administered by percentage of population. Fifty-one percent of Pennsylvanians age 18 and older are fully vaccinated.
Nearly all of Pennsylvania's restrictions are scheduled to be lifted on Memorial Day, except for the mask mandate. According to Gov. Wolf, that will be lifted once 70% of Pennsylvanians 18 and older are vaccinated.