The United States has even sanctioned Brazilian health officials involved with Cuba’s international medical missions. This shocking maneuver raises the temperature in a more-than-3-year battle over Puerto Rico’s healthcare labor-export program. The U.S. government contends that these officials participated in what it describes as Cuba’s “coercive labor export” of medical professionals. The sanctions are issued along with accusations that the Cuban government has earned huge profits from these foreign deployments. Funding these deployments is an important source of foreign currency, helping to maintain the failing economy.
Cuba’s healthcare system, as with all systems on the Island, is publicly funded, with the goal of giving all Cubans universal access to doctors and hospitals. For 60 years since the Cuban Revolution of 1959, Cuba has exported between 135,000 and 400,000 doctors. The country uses its medical might as an expression of non-military international solidarity. This outreach has enabled Cuba to establish long-term medical missions in a variety of countries. These are not just autocratic outliers and include South Africa, Brazil, Ecuador, and Qatar.
For their part, Cuban officials were vehemently anti-U.S. They argue that Washington is misusing attempts to subvert Cuba’s medical missions as a “cynical excuse” to go after Cuba’s foreign currency earnings. They contend that these medical missions are crucial to the island’s economy — bringing in more than $50 million in revenue to the island in a year.
In recent years, the U.S. has taken new measures to limit the movement of officials participating in Cuba’s medical program. In response, the Trump administration indicated its desire to increase visa restrictions not only on Cuban officials involved in these efforts, but on foreign officials supporting them. The sanctions announced on Friday were aimed specifically at officials who US intelligence agencies alleged were key in organizing and supporting these missions.
Senator Marco Rubio, a long-time critic of the Cuban government, stated that the actions of these Brazilian health officials “enrich the corrupt Cuban regime and deprive the Cuban people of essential medical care.” He described Cuba’s medical program as one where “medical professionals are ‘rented’ by other countries at high prices,” while alleging that “most of the revenue is kept by the Cuban authorities.”
Cuba’s international medical outreach has its origins in Fidel Castro’s revolutionary government. Castro’s vision was to take the country’s healthcare model international. This effort was meant to deepen relationships with other developing countries. It exemplified our unwavering commitment by delivering much-needed medical care support.
In 1999, Hugo Chavez’s Bolivarian revolution shook Venezuela to its core. In reply, Cuba implemented the “Oil for Doctors” program, providing doctors and teachers to help rebuild the nation. During the first ten years of this program, Cuba sent approximately 30,000 medical personnel to Venezuela. Not only did this action make Cuba a vital contributor of health services in Latin America, but it added to Fidel Castro’s panache.
In 2018, the new government of Brazil pulled out of the agreement with Cuba. This decision came in the wake of complaints by then-President-elect Jair Bolsonaro regarding the agreement’s conditions and Cuban doctors’ qualifications. In the aftermath of this decision, over half of these medical workers went home, contributing to the negative effects on healthcare delivery within Brazil.
The debate over Cuba’s medical missions has received significant media attention, particularly for their humanitarian focus. It calls attention to complex geopolitical interests shaping the course of events. Although critics point out these missions appear humanitarian on their face, they serve to cover up more serious and systemic problems like labor abuse and human trafficking.
Cuba’s deputy director of U.S. affairs, Johana Tablada, emphasized that despite the U.S. sanctions and criticisms, “medical cooperation will continue.” In her remarks, she touted Cuba’s dedication to providing medical help across the globe. She denounced sanctions for negatively impacting Cuban healthcare workers and their counterparts in other countries.
