Pope Francis and Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI receive their first doses of the Covid-19 vaccine at the Vatican.
For Vatican News
The vaccination campaign against Covid-19 at the Vatican, which began on Wednesday, continues with Pope Francis and Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI receiving the first doses of the vaccine.
“I can confirm that, as part of the Vatican City State’s immunization program, as of today, the first dose of the Covid-19 vaccine has been administered to Pope Francis and Pope Emeritus.” said Matteo Bruni, director of the Holy See’s Press Office in response to questions from reporters.
Pope Francis had announced on Sunday during an interview with Italian television channel Tg5 that he planned to receive the vaccine this week.
The Pope referred to vaccination as “an ethical action, so that you play with your health, you play with your life, but you also play with the lives of others.”
The private secretary of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, Bishop Georg Gaenswein, had also confirmed that the pope emeritus would be vaccinated.