HEALTHCARE HEARTBREAK: Tufton seeks to assure that contingencies in place to counter announced shutdown of 50-y-o bilateral agreement that allowed Cuban doctors to fill gaps in sector

Jamaica has closed the door on a 49-year-old bilateral arrangement with Cuba that sent hundreds of Cuban professionals to the island to bolster health infrastructure, bringing services to remote communities.

Confirmation of the termination of the programme came Thursday, via a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade.

Three senior medical professionals who contacted The Gleaner after the news broke expressed regret and “great pain”, though they admitted that “the writing has been on the wall for several years”.

One of them, a highly placed official, believes that “Jamaica may be told to declare the [Cuban] ambassador persona non grata – unwelcome”.

He said the Holness administration had little choice.

“If the People’s National Party (PNP) had won the 2025 elections, they would have been faced with the same possibilities. If they relented, the same level of espionage and destabilisation that occurred between 1977 and 1980 would have happened again, and perhaps worse this time with artificial intelligence. Honestly, neither a PNP nor a JLP (Jamaica Labour Party) administration has a choice. But I say here and now that my heart is grieving and there is nothing I can do,” said the senior doctor, who was part of an early batch of students to have received training in Cuba.

He asked that his name not be used.

Like many others, he served for years in Jamaica after receiving Cuban training before relocating overseas.

Another medical professional expressed the strong belief that “the next news you [may] hear is that Jamaica will be declaring the Cuban ambassador persona non grata, much like they did to Ulysses Estrada in 1980, although the circumstances were very different”.

She added: “First it was an edict to end the PetroCaribe arrangement with Venezuela. Jamaica capitulated and took Venezuela’s shares in Petrojam – Jamaica’s oil refinery – and they were sued for US$250 million. That matter remains unsettled. Now the health programme, and here we are again. It is just so sad all around, especially for Jamaicans who will suffer without Cuban medical help.”

“Something has to be wrong with all the people who have negotiated this programme for nearly 50 years. And all of a sudden, things are wrong with the contracts. This is just rubbish,” she told T he Gleaner.

Cuba’s ambassador to Jamaica, Tania López Larroque, could not be reached yesterday for comment.

Health and Wellness Minister Dr Christopher Tufton said last night that just under 300 health professionals are currently in Jamaica, warning that a void could be created if they decide to return home.

“To the extent that any may wish to go, it will have an impact. We have put some contingencies in place and there are many things that we are doing, including recruitment from the diaspora. We have more than 100 individuals going through a screening process now, MOUs (memoranda of understanding) with Ghana, Nigeria and India, and we are working on private recruitment in The Philippines to fill any void created,” the health minister said.

Tufton acknowledged that Jamaica has long faced shortages in several medical areas.

“We have to now open the process. Having said all of that, it is important to note that the non-renewal of the expired MOU is not a fait accompli as it relates to the Cubans who are here and who may wish to remain. There is an offer for them to have individual contracts in keeping with the laws of the country and continue their sojourn here, and that has been made very clear. We will see in the next few days how that pans out,” he said.

Dr Alfred Dawes, Opposition spokesman on health, described the development as a devastating blow to the island’s healthcare system.

“This is a devastating blow to healthcare in Jamaica, one that I cannot see us recovering from in the foreseeable future. Jamaican patients are once again the victims of a great power rivalry. Eye care will be irreparably impacted and underserved communities will feel it the most. The maintenance of our medical equipment will not be the same,” Dawes said.

Two weeks ago, Tufton had indicated that there was no new MOU between the two countries and that negotiations were under way, though they were proving tedious.

Yesterday’s confirmation came hours before Tufton and the health ministry’s team were scheduled to face lawmakers examining the proposed $1.4-trillion Budget for the 2026–2027 financial year, which begins on April 1.

“The Government of Jamaica has taken the decision to discontinue the current arrangement concerning the deployment of medical professionals in the public health sector by the Government of Cuba,” the statement from Senator Kamina Johnson Smith, minister of foreign affairs and foreign trade, confirmed.

“This comes as both governments were unable to agree on the terms and conditions of a new technical cooperation arrangement following the expiration of the previous agreement in February 2023.”

Jamaica’s decision comes amid tightened economic pressure by the US on Cuba, with Washington urging longstanding partners to end their relationships with the island nation. The US has accused Cuba’s overseas medical missions of constituting forced labour and human trafficking – allegations rejected by Caribbean leaders.

The foreign ministry said Cuban medical professionals currently in Jamaica may be engaged individually for the remainder of their scheduled tenure in keeping with the country’s labour laws.

“In the interest of continuity of the valuable service provided by the Cuban medical professionals present in the country, and for their personal certainty and well-being, the Government of Jamaica has indicated its willingness for the Ministry of Health and Wellness to engage these medical professionals on an individual basis in keeping with local labour laws,” the ministry said.

Cuban medical professionals have been serving in various public health facilities across the island, and Jamaicans have benefited notably from the eye-care programme.

The Government of Jamaica also expressed “sincere appreciation” to the Government of Cuba for its significant contribution to the country’s health sector.

Tufton said nearly 300 Cuban doctors and specialists continue to serve in Jamaica under existing contracts.

Jamaica’s medical cooperation programme with Cuba has been in place since 1976 and has been upheld by successive administrations, the foreign ministry said.

The Gleaner understands that the decision was not taken lightly but that the country ultimately had to accede to Washington’s demands, which were made clear by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

The issue of the medical brigade programme is said to have dominated discussions at the foreign ministry as the Andrew Holness-led administration sought to manage its relationship with an increasingly impatient US.

Cuba has also trained hundreds of Caribbean doctors and dentists under government scholarships since the 1970s, many of whom now serve across the region.

At a CARICOM summit last week, Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness praised Cuba for supporting the region’s health systems but emphasised that Jamaica “stands firmly” for democracy, human rights, political accountability and an open, market-based economy.

“We do not believe that long-term stability can exist where economic freedom is constrained and political participation is limited,” he said, adding that Jamaica is “sensitive” to the struggles of the Cuban people as they face the US oil blockade.

“Sustainable prosperity requires openness to ideas, to enterprise, to investment and to the will of the people.”

During a visit to Jamaica last year, Rubio said Washington does not oppose the Cuban medical programme itself, but rather what it alleges to be forced labour within the system. The allegation of human trafficking has been denied by some of the professionals themselves and by the Cuban embassy in Jamaica.

The fate of the education programme, which sees Cuban teachers in local schools instructing foreign languages, remains unknown.

erica.virtue@gleanerjm.com