A Message from Pope Francis to Inspire Confidence in the COVID-19 Vaccines
August 19, 2021 • Diocese of St. Augustine

To continue increasing confidence in the COVID-19 vaccines, specifically in communities disproportionately affected by the virus, the Ad Council and COVID Collaborative announced a new PSA featuring Pope Francis and six cardinals and archbishops from North, Central and South America. Representing the first-ever Ad Council campaign designed for and distributed to a global audience, messaging in the video is delivered in English, Spanish and Portuguese to reach communities worldwide, reminding viewers that COVID-19 vaccines are safe, effective and save lives. The new creative, made in cooperation with the Vatican’s Dicastery for Integral Human Development, is a part of the Ad Council and COVID Collaborative’s groundbreaking COVID-19 Vaccine Education Initiative.

“Thanks to God’s grace and to the work of many, we now have vaccines to protect us from COVID-19,” Pope Francis says in the PSA. “Getting the vaccines that are authorized by the respective authorities is an act of love. I pray to God that each one of us can make his or her own small gesture of love, no matter how small, love is always grand.”

Recent data shows that the United States has more progress to make with COVID-19 vaccinations in the country. Currently, 72% of the American adult population and 67% of Hispanic adults have been
vaccinated against COVID-19 with at least one dose. Worldwide, COVID-19 cases are on the rise, especially across North, Central and South America in countries like Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, Honduras, Mexico and Peru where rates of individuals fully vaccinated range from only 5.5% (Honduras) to 30% (El Salvador). Though access to vaccines continues to be a challenge, confidence in the vaccines also presents a hurdle.

For more information and answers to top questions about the COVID-19 vaccines, visit GetVaccineAnswers.org and DeTiDepende.org.