MOSCOW, July 2. /TASS/. More than 8,100 people were covered by a herd immunity study to the novel coronavirus infection in three Russian regions in June, Russia’s sanitary watchdog said on Thursday.

"A study of herd immunity to the novel coronavirus infection was conducted in June 2020 in three pilot regions, namely St. Petersburg, the Tyumen region, and the Khabarovsk Territory," it said. "The study covered 8,168 people, including 2,722 in ST. Petersburg, 2,758 in the Tyumen region, and 2,688 in the Khabarovsk Territory."

According to the watchdog, herd immunity studies are conducted in 23 Russian regions.

The study involved both children and adults, both diagnosed with the coronavirus infection and not. The study covered the following age categories: children aged from one to 17 and adults of six age groups, namely from 18 to 29, from 30 to 39, from 40 to 49, from 50 to 59, from 60 to 69, and 70 and older

The study of herd immunity is needed to expose specifics of the epidemic process, develop a forecast for the situation development in any individual region and generally in the country.

To date, 654,405coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Russia, with 422,931 patients having recovered from the disease. Russia’s latest data indicates 9,536 fatalities nationwide. Earlier, the Russian government set up an Internet hotline to keep the public updated on the coronavirus situation.