The defense ministry has decided to extend the deployment of military doctors who were sent to private hospitals to address the vacuum left by trainee doctors who walked off the job in protest of the government’s plan to increase the medical school admissions quota.

The ministry’s spokesperson, Jeon Ha-kyu, told reporters on Tuesday that the initial four-week deployment of some 20 military doctors dispatched to hospitals on March 11 was extended to May 5. 

Jeon added that as a group of 100 military doctors who were sent to hospitals on March 25 will work until this Sunday, the ministry is considering extending some of the doctors' deployment while replacing some of them who need to return to base. 

Jeon said the military will consider dispatching additional military doctors if a request is made by the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters.