Health officials on Monday called on patients with mild symptoms to seek treatment in the private sector, to avoid clogging up emergency wards at public hospitals.

This came as Hong Kong reported 20,230 new Covid-19 cases, including 367 imported infections. Another 74 patients with Covid have died.

The Hospital Authority (HA) said more than 5,200 Covid patients are currently being treated at public hospitals, with over 400 of them seriously or critically ill.

It said patients may need to wait for as long as 12 hours at some emergency wards to receive treatment, and the queues may get even longer in the coming few days following the public holidays.

The authority added that some internal wards of public hospitals have reached an occupancy rate of 130 percent.

The busier hospitals include Queen Elizabeth, United Christian, Tuen Mun and Prince of Wales hospitals.

The HA said it will implement measures to boost efficiency and facilitate the upcoming border reopening with the mainland, adding that resources will be reserved for Hong Kong residents.