Caribbean leaders have hit again at a risk issued by the US authorities to cancel visas for anybody working with or supporting Cuban medical services, citing allegations of compelled labour and claiming these missions “enrich the Cuban regime”.
Cuban medical missions, which give docs, nurses and different medical workers in addition to medical services, are crucial to healthcare methods within the Caribbean.
So how have Caribbean nations responded to this risk and what would it not imply for healthcare there?
Why is the US authorities taking goal at Cuba’s medical programme?
The focusing on of Cuban medical missions will not be new for US President Donald Trump’s administration. Throughout his first time period as president of the US from 2017 to 2021, his administration imposed visa sanctions on Cuba’s world medical programme. His authorities claimed these missions amounted to “human trafficking” as a result of, it stated, Cuban docs are reportedly underpaid.
This time round, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has introduced restrictions on visas for presidency officers in Cuba and anybody else, globally, that the US deems to be “complicit” with Cuba’s international medical programmes. The State Division stated the restrictions would lengthen to “present and former officers” in addition to the “speedy household of such individuals”.
Rubio referred to as the Cuban medical programme a type of “compelled labour” and the federal government has warned that Caribbean nations taking part in these programmes might face visa restrictions in addition to potential commerce repercussions.
Nevertheless, no concrete proof has been offered to help these claims.
The US is increasing its Cuba-related visa restriction coverage. @StateDept has taken steps to limit visa issuance to Cuban and complicit third-country authorities officers and people answerable for Cuba’s exploitative labor export program. We are going to promote…
— Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) February 25, 2025
The US alleges that Cuba’s authorities exploits its medical professionals by conserving a big portion of their wages and proscribing their freedoms. Whereas some Cuban docs have defected and criticised the circumstances of the programme, many others say they willingly take part.
Tamarys Bahamonde, an economist on the US-based Middle for Latin American and Latino Research, stated this concern is “complicated” and may centre the voices of the docs themselves.
“No matter whether or not Cuban docs qualify as compelled labour, we do know that they don’t negotiate their very own contracts or working circumstances,” she stated.
“Cuba retains a good portion of their salaries, and there are testimonies from docs confirming restrictions on motion, confiscation of passports by Cuban authorities in host nations, and limitations on bringing their households alongside.”
On the identical time, Bahamonde reiterated the essential position that Cuban medical professionals play, particularly in relation to offering healthcare companies to underserved communities.
“Throughout my time working for a international embassy in Havana, I noticed firsthand how grateful many nations are for Cuban docs and the advantages they carry to remoted areas – locations that beforehand had little to no medical entry,” she stated.
Can Trump’s administration legally do that?
Legally, Trump has broad authority over visa coverage via the State Division. The US authorities can impose restrictions while not having approval from Congress by citing nationwide safety or international coverage considerations.
Affected nations can push again via diplomatic or authorized channels, however Bahamonde identified that the US focusing on of Cuban medical missions will not be unique to the Trump administration.
“The proposed visa restriction is definitely an growth of a coverage initiated by the Biden administration. In 2024, President Biden signed a spending invoice that included sanctions in opposition to officers from third nations that contracted Cuba’s medical companies,” Bahamonde instructed Al Jazeera.
“That very same yr, his administration additionally accused Cuba of benefiting from its medical professionals.”
She added that opposition to Cuban medical missions is “bipartisan”, citing a 2024 decision led by Republican Congressman Mark Inexperienced, calling for visa revocations in opposition to nations hiring Cuban docs.
“The sentiment concerning Cuban medical missions is pretty constant throughout social gathering traces. Whether or not or not President Trump has unilateral authority to impose these visa restrictions, I wouldn’t anticipate vital resistance to them,” she stated.
This implies that, no matter who’s in energy, Caribbean nations will seemingly proceed to face diplomatic strain over their reliance on Cuban medical professionals, she stated.
How have Caribbean leaders responded?
Some Caribbean leaders have declared they may surrender their proper to US visas if it means conserving Cuban medical missions.
This week, Barbados’s Prime Minister Mia Mottley gave a fiery deal with to parliament, calling the US stance “unfair and unjustified”.
“We couldn’t get via the pandemic with out the Cuban nurses and the Cuban docs,” she stated.
Trinidad and Tobago’s prime minister, Keith Rowley, warned that US interference in Caribbean healthcare choices was unacceptable.
“Out of the blue now, we now have been referred to as human traffickers as a result of we rent technical individuals who we pay prime greenback,” Rowley stated, including that he was ready to lose his US visa.
Equally, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves highlighted the direct impact Cuban docs have on affected person care.
“If the Cubans should not there, we might not be capable of run the service,” he stated. “I’ll favor to lose my visa than to have 60 poor and dealing folks die.”
And final week, Jamaican International Minister Kamina Johnson Smith instructed reporters her authorities views Cuban medics as very important.
“Their presence right here is of significance to our healthcare system,” she stated. There are 400 Cuban docs, nurses and medical technicians presently working within the nation.
In a submit on X, Bahamian International Minister Fred Mitchell vouched for the Cuban programme, saying his authorities “follows all worldwide finest practices within the recruitment of labour”.
Hugh Todd, Guyana’s international minister, instructed the AP information service on Tuesday that 15 international ministers from the Caribbean Group (CARICOM) had met with Mauricio Claver-Carone, US particular envoy for Latin America, in Washington, DC, to voice their opposition and demand readability on US coverage.
“The US is a strategic associate to CARICOM, however this crucial concern must be handled on the stage of heads of presidency,” he stated.
Why are Cuban medical missions crucial to Caribbean healthcare, and what occurs if they’re lower?
Cuba has greater than 24,000 docs working in 56 nations worldwide, with the missions significantly boosting healthcare throughout the Caribbean, particularly in impoverished nations dealing with deep financial crises and with restricted medical companies.
“The influence on Caribbean nations will depend upon how important Cuban docs are to their healthcare methods and the way tough they’d be to exchange within the brief time period with out considerably affecting the communities that depend on them,” Bahamonde stated.
For a lot of Caribbean nations, the short-term penalties might be devastating. Coaching native docs takes years, and skilled professionals typically migrate to different nations, abandoning a persistent scarcity.
Cuba helps fill this hole by sending hundreds of medical personnel which might be way more reasonably priced to locals than non-public healthcare choices, Bahamonde defined. These missions present main care, emergency response groups and specialists in fields which might be typically underrepresented in Caribbean hospitals.
They’ve additionally performed a outstanding position in relation to responding to regional disasters, similar to hurricanes, earthquakes and public well being emergencies. Cuban docs had been instrumental in combating the cholera outbreak in Haiti following a devastating earthquake in 2010, and in helping Caribbean nations throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
Which different nations depend on Cuban medical missions?
Cuba doesn’t simply ship docs to the Caribbean; it has medical missions everywhere in the world. Some key examples embody:
- Venezuela is likely one of the largest recipients of Cuban docs, with hundreds working in group clinics.
- Brazil had a significant Cuban medical programme till 2018, when Cuba recalled 8,000 docs resulting from a diplomatic dispute.
- Italy obtained Cuban docs throughout the COVID-19 pandemic to assist overwhelmed hospitals in a few of its hardest-hit areas.
- South Africa hosts Cuban medical professionals in rural areas the place there are physician shortages.
