Pope Francis: COVID-19 Vaccine Should Be Made Available ‘Especially for the Most Vulnerable and Needy’

Pope Francis is advocating for the “most vulnerable and needy” so they can receive the COVID-19 vaccine ahead of others.

“Vaccines for everybody, especially for the most vulnerable and needy,” who should be first in line, Francis said on Friday, according to The Associated Press.

He said the development of the vaccines are a “light of hope” for the world.

Francis continued, “We can’t let closed nationalisms impede us from living as the true human family that we are.”

He called on leaders to “promote cooperation and not competition, and to search for a solution for all.”

Francis delivered his address from the Apostolic Palace instead of outdoors in St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City.

During his Christmas address, Francis acknowledged the impact the pandemic has had on the world and urged all to come together.

“At this moment in history, marked by the ecological crisis and grave economic and social imbalances only worsened by the coronavirus pandemic, it is all the more important for us to acknowledge one another as brothers and sisters,” he said.

Watch his remarks below:

Francis added, “May the child of Bethlehem help us, then, to be generous and supportive and helpful especially toward those who are vulnerable, the sick.”

He acknowledged those who are unemployed and women who have suffered domestic violence during the quarantine.

Francis also tweeted, “May Christmas be an opportunity for all of us to rediscover the family as a cradle of life and faith, a place of acceptance and love, dialogue, forgiveness, fraternal solidarity and shared joy, a source of peace for all humanity.”