U.S. sanctions endanger patient lives in Cuba: official

What the report says

HAVANA — Cuba’s deputy health minister, Julio Guerra, said on Wednesday that the U.S. trade embargo and a recent fuel blockade are worsening power cuts and shortages in ways that he said put patients at risk. His remarks were delivered at a Havana ceremony tied to a donation of medicines for the Hermanos Ameijeiras Clinical Surgical Hospital, a major referral center in the capital.

According to the article, Guerra argued that unstable electricity threatens the storage and preservation of medicines and other medical supplies. He described the sanctions as depriving Cuba of resources needed to keep its healthcare system functioning. Hospital deputy director Reynaldo Denis de Armas also said the tightening restrictions and fuel shortages were severely straining the country.

The report said Cuban authorities estimate the public health sector lost up to $288 million between March 2024 and February 2025, and that cumulative losses from more than six decades of sanctions have reached nearly $4.2 billion. The article also cited official figures saying more than 100,000 Cubans are awaiting surgeries because of shortages and the energy crisis, including thousands of cancer patients and children. It added that the government and BioCubaFarma have warned of wider effects on medicine supply and health indicators, though these claims are attributed to Cuban officials and agencies.