Pope Leo XIV used his first major address in Uruguay to call for universal health care "in every society," less than four weeks after surgeons removed part of his lung for cancer. The speech opened a 12-day trip through Uruguay, Argentina and Peru that the Vatican cleared only after his doctors signed off.
Speaking Friday from a platform in Montevideo's Independence Square to Uruguay's civil and religious authorities, business leaders, civil society and the diplomatic corps, Leo started from his own hospital stay, America magazine reported from the scene. "Recently, I experienced firsthand the limitations imposed by illness, and I received care for which I am deeply grateful," he said, adding that "that experience makes me think of the many men and women who lack the means to obtain a timely diagnosis or receive the treatments they need."
Highlights of Pope Leo XIV's arrival and welcome in Montevideo, Uruguay pic.twitter.com/G1zyVmxjGy
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"Ensuring that health care is accessible to everyone, regardless of their resources, is a duty that confronts every society," Leo said. Pope Francis also pushed for universal health care, and it is a long-standing position of the Holy See, so the line is less a new doctrine than a pope putt
