KALUGA, June 5. /TASS/. The number of new coronavirus cases remains quite high in Russia so people need to get booster vaccine shots, Health Minister Mikhail Murashko told reporters on Sunday.

"The number of new cases remains quite high so we recommend that people get booster shots once in six months," he said in response to a TASS question.

The health minister pointed out that the Sputnik Light vaccine and one of the two components of the Sputnik V vaccine could be used as a booster shot.

The spread of the coronavirus infection worldwide has been significantly reducing yet it is necessary to be ready for the new waves of incidence, Murashko told. "Yes, the incidence has been substantially decreasing. We see that those countries in another hemisphere where winter began now have an increase in incidence, <…> so, of course, there should be readiness for the new waves," he said.

According to the latest global statistics, about 531.7 mln people have been infected worldwide and approximately 6.3 mln deaths have been reported. To date, 18,351,851 coronavirus cases have been confirmed in Russia. Russia’s latest data indicates 379,520 fatalities nationwide. Earlier, the Russian government set up an Internet hotline to keep the public updated on the coronavirus situation.