Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni said in a statement that he was “able to confirm that within the vaccine program of the Vatican City State, to date the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine has been administered to Pope Francis and the Pope Emeritus “.
The statement did not say when Pope Francis, 84, or his 93-year-old predecessor was vaccinated. Vatican City started its vaccination program on Wednesday at a medical center set up in the main auditorium, where the pontiff usually holds his weekly hearings. Both men are at greater risk of contracting the virus due to age.
“I believe that ethically everyone should get the vaccine. It is not an option, it is an ethical choice because you are playing with your health, with your life, but you are also playing with the lives of others ”, said the pontiff in an interview with the Italian channel Canale 5 broadcast on Sunday night .
“I ask all those responsible for the states, companies, international organizations … to promote cooperation and not competition and seek a solution for everyone, vaccines for everyone, especially for the most vulnerable and needy in all the regions of the globe “, said the Pope during his traditional message Urbi et Orbi (to the city and the world) in the Vatican.
On Saturday, the Vatican newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano, announced that Francisco’s private doctor, Fabrizio Soccorsi, had died as a result of “complications due to Covid”.
Francis chose Soccorsi as his personal doctor in 2015, the media said.
Soccorsi, 78, was hospitalized in Rome on December 26 due to a previous cancer disease, according to the Italian Episcopal Conference newspaper Avvenire. It is not clear exactly when he last had direct contact with Pope Francis.