Hotels in San Francisco, many of which have temporarily closed or are limping along with less than 10 percent occupancy, may soon start filling up again.

At a press conference on Wednesday, City of San Francisco officials stated that they have signed contracts with at least six hotels, providing 479 rooms where health care workers and some of the city's homeless can bed down during the pandemic.

Trent Rhorer, the executive director of the city's Human Services Agency, said that by the end of this week the city will likely sign on three more hotels, bringing the total number of available rooms up to 2,555. Rhorer said these rooms should act as a "release valve" for area hospitals unable to provide space to quarantine or isolate those who test positive or are showing symptoms for COVID-19 but are not sick enough to be hospitalized.

As of Wednesday, 123 of those hotel rooms are occupied, according to Rhorer, who added that the city has made the decision not to name the participating hotels for privacy reasons.

"The contract terms and duration vary by hotel," Rhorer told SFGATE, "Each of the contracts are negotiated individually between the City and hotel ownership. The City will not disclose the agreed upon rates as we are in active negotiations with dozens of additional hotels."

The rooms are available for health care workers who are concerned about potentially infecting family or household members as well as those who have tested positive for the virus and require isolation.

Among the city's homeless population, the most vulnerable (aged 60+ with underlying medical conditions) and those who are able to self-care are provided the rooms but are not required to accept them. "We don't have the ability to force anyone to stay anywhere," said Mayor London Breed at the press conference.

"The Department of Public Health has set up a protocol for medical/health providers to refer people to the quarantine rooms. We need medical documentation for each person in order to receive FEMA reimbursement," said Rhorer.

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Chris McGinnis is SFGATE's senior travel correspondent. You can reach him via email or follow him on Twitter or Facebook. Don't miss a shred of important travel news by signing up for his FREE weekly email updates!