Jamaica the Latest to Cave in U.S. War on Doctors

Last year, Secretary of State Marco Rubio visited Jamaica and pressured its government to end the longstanding Cuban medical cooperation mission on the island. At the time, Jamaica’s Prime Minister Andrew Holness defended the Cuban mission and denied U.S. allegations that the doctors were “forced labor.”

But last week, Jamaica canceled its agreement with Cuba, becoming the latest of more than half a dozen Central American and Caribbean countries to cave to U.S. pressure.

“The government of Jamaica is giving in to the pressure of the U.S. government, which does not care about the health needs of our Caribbean brothers,” said Cuba’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs in a statement.

It added that over the past 30 years, Cuba’s mission in Jamaica provided more than eight million medical consultations, performed more than 7,400 surgeries and aided in approximately 7,000 births.

Cuba has sent health professionals to more than 150 countries since the 1960s. The island’s doctors usually serve impoverished and underserved populations in the Global South. In recent years, the missions have emerged as the island’s main source of foreign currency.

The U.S. government alleges that the medical missions are “forced labor." It has presented no credible evidence to support this claim. Cuban doctors and nurses volunteer to join the missions and are paid multiples of what they earn in Cuba.