Unvaccinated can attend Pope’s visit to Slovakia with negative test

The unvaccinated who have been tested negative or have recovered from the virus in the past half-year will also have the opportunity to attend the visit of Pope Francis in Slovakia from 12-15 September, the Conference of Slovak Bishops announced during the weekend after bishops and especially Christian politicians called for the easing of the rules announced in July according to which only vaccinated people could attend.

Pope Francis will visit Bratislava, then travel to the east of the country, where he will meet with the Roma community in the city of Košice. He will also visit another eastern Slovak city, Prešov.

The biggest attendance of around 20,000 people is expected in Šaštín-Stráže, where he will celebrate the mass.

The unvaccinated will have their separate entries to the venues and will be separated from the people who are fully vaccinated.

Prime minister Eduard Heger agreed with the rule change, saying that the rules should be the same for every mass event and that the  Pope’s visit should be no exception.

Pope Francis will visit the country as the pandemic continues to worsen.

According to the Denník N media outlet, the situation is getting worse even faster than last year with the number of daily new cases and the rate of positive tests increasing. Experts say the situation will worsen even more as the new school year started on 1 September.