Pope Francis said on Saturday that he would get a vaccine against COVID-19 and declared it a moral obligation for everyone to get one.
“I think ethically everyone should get the vaccine,” the pontiff told Italian television channel Canale 5. “It’s an ethical choice because it plays with your health, with your life, but it also plays with life. of others “.
The Vatican is launching its vaccination program next week and Francis has already made an appointment, the Washington Post reported citing the TV interview.
At 84 and missing a part of his lung, the pope is considered high risk. He has followed the guidelines of social distancing, but has appeared in front of crowds without a mask.
In the interview, which aired 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 doesn’t pose any special risk, why not take it? There is a suicidal denial that I can’t explain, but today you need to get the vaccine.”