MOSCOW (BLOOMBERG) – Some Russian politicians and Kremlin officials have resorted to wearing badges that supposedly offer protection against the coronavirus as the epidemic takes a toll on their ranks.

One Japanese-made badge – a plastic white cross that sells for 867 rubles (S$17) on the pharmacy website Apteka.ru – has been seen on several deputies in the State Duma, Russia’s lower house of parliament. President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov, who this week said he had fallen ill with Covid-19, also wore a protective badge for a time.

Many prominent Russians have eschewed more traditional protective gear such as masks and gloves while continuing to work even as the virus spreads rapidly among members of the country’s political elite. Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, three government ministers and at least five Duma deputies have all been diagnosed with the virus.

“Scientists have not yet reached a consensus on their application,” Duma vice chairwoman and Just Russia member Olga Epifanova told Gazeta.ru on Thursday (May 14) about her use of a badge. “Some argue that this is really a powerful tool, while others talk about the placebo effect.”

Peskov said in an interview published on Thursday in Kommersant newspaper that he had stopped wearing his badge after journalists took note and he suggested that may have been a mistake.

Russia passed Spain on Tuesday to become the country with the second-most coronavirus cases in the world after the US. It now has 262,843 confirmed cases and has averaged more than 10,000 new diagnoses daily so far in May.

While total fatalities from the disease have been very low compared to other countries, at 2,418 so far, Russia on Friday reported a record 113 people died from Covid-19 in the previous day.

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