Alarmed by a threat from Secretary of State Marco Rubio that the administration will restrict visa access to officials linked to the Cuban medical brigade program, the region is pressing for a meeting with Rubio or any senior official in Washington. Rubio, of Cuban ancestry, says the plan is to expand the US-Cuba visa restriction system as punishment for involvement in the brigade program because it is a form of human trafficking, a charge regional governments dismiss as basically foolish. “We totally reject the notion that we are involved in any form of human trafficking. The United States also must understand that these Cuban doctors and nurses represent the core of our health care service within the Caribbean. If we have to review the payment mechanism, that is something we can look at. But this extraterritorial positioning, articulation, and threats. I don’t know that this is the route we need to go,” he stated. Meanwhile, Jamaican Foreign Minister Kamina Johnson Smith told a post-cabinet briefing in the past week that there is cause for alarm in the region if the US persists with this policy change. “Jamaica has had quite a long history of participation in the Cuban medical cooperation program, and in fact, that is replicated throughout the Caribbean, so the statement has been received with some concern. “The Jamaican government is examining the operation of our system. We have over 400 participants from the Cuban medical program at different levels, doctors, nurses, biomedical engineers, and technicians, so their presence here is of importance to our healthcare system,” she said Caribbean dependent on Cuban medical professionals – Caribbean Life
At least two influential Caribbean leaders, the prime ministers of Trinidad and Tobago and of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, have publicly rallied against the new policy and said they would gladly forgo their U.S. visas. “I will prefer to lose my visa than to have 60 poor and working people die,” said St. Vincent Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves. He said Cuban doctors are providing critical care to patients including 60 who receive dialysis treatment. https://www.usnews.com/news/health-...cuban-medical-missions-saying-theyre-critical
Rubio's mad that Cuba is doing more for the world than America with USAID dead. If he wants to orient the Caribbean towards the communists, I say go for it.
Cuba has been sending doctors all over the world for decades at this point to help other countries. I remember them being one of the first countries to step up to aid others during COVID. There is something that I am missing here
Doesn't want to be out-deplorabled by the rest of the felon's administration (and unelected co-President)?
Last month, Bruno Rodríguez, Cuba’s foreign minister, accused Rubio of putting his “personal agenda” ahead of U.S. interests and called the move an “unjustified aggressive measure.”
If we want to strongarm countries by turning on/off the aid at the whim of a tyrant, we cant let other countries go around and give out for free, that would be Un-American!
Fun Fact: Cubans enjoy longer life expectancy, much higher literacy and suffer less crime and homelessness than do Americans. But, m’uh GDP!
also a profit center for them, even at the reduced rates they get in those countries good on them if they can export qualified medical personnel at a value cost to the end user
