Health authorities issued an administrative order to mobilize more hospital beds for COVID-19 patients outside the capital region in preparation for a possible uptick in cases following the Chuseok holiday.

According to the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters on Friday, beds for patients in serious condition outside the metro area will be expanded to 93, while another 53 will be added to newly designated facilities.

Over one-thousand beds for patients with moderate symptoms have been secured at 46 facilities.

Last month a similar order was issued for the Seoul metropolitan area. 

As of Thursday, 75 percent of beds for seriously ill patients were occupied in Ulsan, while those for moderate patients in Daejeon and South Chungcheong Province were 79-point-three and 74-point-eight percent occupied, respectively.