COVID-19 hospitalizations are going up in Western New York, Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz announced Monday on Twitter.

The announcement is in light of an increased COVID-19 positivity rate in Western New York and the city of Buffalo.

There were 34 COVID-19 patients in Western New York hospitals and eight in the ICU, 27 of whom were from Erie County, according to Poloncarz.

By comparison, there were 22 hospitalizations on August 22 in the county, Poloncarz said.

The other counties had zero patients, and that is now at seven.

Sunday, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Western New York remains a “caution flag,” as the region is reporting the highest positivity rate in the state. According to Sunday’s data, the region is reporting a 1.6 percent positivity rate, while the city of Buffalo is reporting 5.5 percent.

The average positivity rate statewide has consistently stayed under 1 percent.