With 999 people currently in intensive care, the figure is at its lowest since March 10, when Italy introduced a nationwide lockdown, and less than a quarter of the 4068 it reached at its peak on April 3.
Another 13,539 patients are being treated in Italian hospitals and 67,950 are in self-isolation at home, making a total of 82,488 confirmed active cases of the virus.
The number of daily deaths rose slightly to 179 on Monday from Sunday’s toll of 165, but was still the third consecutive day below 200 fatalities, the civil protection agency said.
Around one in four of the latest deaths occurred in Lombardy, the northern region that has now seen 15,054 of Italy’s 30,739 deaths since the outbreak began.
There were no deaths recorded overnight in Sardinia, Basilicata, Molise, Umbria or Valle d’Aosta.
Another 744 coronavirus cases were confirmed on Monday, nearly half of them in Lombardy.
Italy has recorded 219,814 cases of the virus since January, though the real total is thought to be much higher.
The official number of deaths, which does not include people dying in care homes or the community, is also likely to be far lower than the actual toll.
Italy’s death toll from the virus is the third-highest in the world, after the United States and the United Kingdom.
The Italian government eased its strict nationwide lockdown slightly on May 4, but further restrictions are set to be relaxed next week, when museums, shops, cultural sites, churches and libraries will reopen their doors.
