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An Appeal to Pope Francis

Although vaccine inequality poses a threat to everyone, rich countries nonetheless have stockpiled supplies, creating a situation in which hundreds of millions of doses could now expire before ever making it into someone's arm. With G20 leaders meeting in Rome this month, we desperately need a moral breakthrough.

Most Holy Father,

Inspired by your messages on interdependence and sharing, we humbly bring to your attention the issue of vaccine inequality plaguing our planet and ask you to support action to address the unequal distribution of global vaccines between high and low-income countries. Over 6 billion doses have been administered worldwide, but 70% of these doses were administered by ten countries, while only 2% of people in low-income countries have received a vaccine dose. Although vaccines are humanity’s true hope to end the pandemic, this is only the case if they are available to all. No one is safe until we are all safe, so we must collaborate. As you have said when urging people to get vaccinated, “Getting vaccinated is a simple yet profound way to care for one another, especially the most vulnerable.”

Just as the arrival of vaccines have instilled hope of an end to the pandemic, we believe that vaccine inequality can be ended. But that will require high-level action by the ministers of the wealthiest countries. As you have said, vaccines can “bring hope to end the pandemic, but only if they are available to all and if we collaborate with one another.”

https://prosyn.org/pohycpa