Pope Francis said on Saturday that he will receive the vaccine COVID-19 and declared that it is everyone’s moral obligation to obtain one.
“I believe that ethically everyone should get the vaccine,” said the pontiff to the Italian TV station Canale 5. “It is an ethical choice because you are playing with your health, with your life, but you are also playing with other people’s lives” .
The Vatican launches its vaccination program next week, and Francis has already made an appointment, the Washington Post reported, citing the television interview.
At 84 years old and without part of the lung, the pope is considered to be at high risk. He followed the guidelines for social distance, but appeared before crowds without a face mask.
In the interview, which will air on Sunday, Francis spoke positively about the vaccine – something he has been doing for months.
“I don’t know why some will say, ‘No, the vaccine is dangerous,'” he said. “But if doctors offer it to you as something that can work, that poses no special risk, why not accept it? There is a suicidal denial that I couldn’t explain, but today you need to get the vaccine ”.