FILE PHOTO: A medic of the regional hospital receives Russia’s “Sputnik-V” vaccine shot against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Tver, Russia October 12, 2020. REUTERS/Tatyana Makeyeva/File Photo
MOSCOW — Health clinics in Moscow will begin offering booster vaccine shots against COVID-19 on Thursday, the city’s mayor said, as Russian officials scramble to contain a surge in cases blamed on the highly infectious Delta variant.
The health ministry on Wednesday said revaccination would begin on July 1, news agencies reported, making Russia one of the first countries in the world to officially launch a booster shot program for people already fully vaccinated.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said revaccination was available with any of Russia’s four registered vaccines, but that the flagship Sputnik V and the one-component Sputnik-Light would initially be used at eight clinics across the city.
The health ministry on Wednesday issued new regulations that officially recommended revaccination, news agencies said.