Concerns grow as Jamaica ends Cuban medical programme

‘Behind the political pressures, policies [and] propaganda are real people’

Originally published on Global Voices

Perhaps Jamaicans should have seen this coming when the government, back in 2025, announced it would be reviewing the decades-old programme that brought hundreds of Cuban medical personnel to its shores — an unusual move, especially for a programme that had been running smoothly for 50 years.

The current U.S. administration of Donald Trump, however, has been painting the Cuban medical brigade programme as one of “forced labour” — a perception many regional territories initially resisted. As Jamaica’s minister of foreign affairs and foreign trade, Senator Kamina Johnson Smith, emphasised on March 20, 2025, “Given the MOU’s expiration last year, we had already begun a review process before international concerns were raised. While we have identified a few areas for alignment with our own overseas labour programmes, we are confident that the Cuban programme is a legitimate bilateral cooperation programme, not an example of trafficking.”

Yet, changes to the arrangement seemed inevitable. Following a media briefing with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on March 17 last year, Minister of Health and Wellness Christopher Tufton hinted at what was to come: “There is a conversation that is taking place looking at the existing MOU, looking at the possibilities for change, and so there is an opportunity, given the recent discussions coming out of the U.S. […] for us to clarify issues and maybe adjust elements of the agreement.”

At the time, the Cuban Embassy in Jamaica shared an article detailing the benefits of the flagship Jamaica-Cuba Eye Care Programme, noting that Cuban medical personnel “bridged the gap” in Jamaica’s health care programme:

The Jamaica-Cuba Eyecare Programme doesn't just offer medical treatment—it provides a lens through which to examine what healthcare could be when nations prioritize people over partisan politics and results over rhetoric.#CubaPorLaVida https://t.co/YYdIPXgaQq

— EmbaCuba Jamaica (@EmbaCubaJamaica) May 16, 2025

Fast-forward to the announcement by Jamaica’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade on March 5, 2026: “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 […] 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.”

The statement added that Jamaica was willing to engage medical professionals in the country “on an individual basis, in keeping with local labour laws,” until the end of their scheduled stay. Minister Kamina Johnson Smith said in parliament that the decision was not influenced by the United States.

In a second press release, her ministry pointed out that the Cuban government had not responded to Jamaican officials’ proposals, adding, “You would have heard us defending the programme in various contexts, because when the [Cuban medical professionals] come here, we do our very best to be respectful and ensure that our treatment of them accords with the laws of Jamaica and best international labour law practice. Where the programme came into conflict with those things, unfortunately, we were not able to reach agreement on correcting them and that is why the programme has ended. […] There were issues that were easily solved. We were going to put the Eye Programme and the General Medical Programme together in one document. We were going to look at the issue of the ability to celebrate Cuban National Days here.”

The Cuban Embassy in Jamaica shared its response to this second press release widely and promptly:

Statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cuba

Cuba regrets the decision of the government of Jamaica to cease medical cooperation, yielding to pressure from the U.S.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Cuba reports that, on March 4,… pic.twitter.com/XutGTPt0EQ

— Cuban Embassy in US (@EmbaCubaUS) March 6, 2026

“With this action,” its tweet states, “the government of Jamaica yields to the pressures of the government of the United States, which is not concerned about the health needs of the Caribbean brothers.

Cuba deeply regrets that in this way a history of fruitful and sustained collaboration is disregarded, one that has brought countless benefits to the Jamaican people, who are now deprived of receiving the basic and specialized health services that Cuban collaborators provided.

In response to the step taken by the government of Jamaica, the government of Cuba has made the sovereign decision to proceed with the return of the Cuban Medical Brigade. These health professionals leave behind an indelible mark and return to Cuba with the satisfaction of a duty fulfilled and the permanent willingness to assist wherever their spirit of solidarity is required.”

Jamaicans expressed varying degrees of regret, annoyance, and cynicism at their government’s announcement, pointing to what they view as the likely influence of the Trump administration in the decision. Others took a slightly more nuanced view, with one X user posting archival video footage of fiery speeches by former Jamaican Prime Minister Michael Manley defending the country’s relationship with Cuba:

Former Prime Minister of Jamaica, Michael Manley, on US pressure on Cuban-Jamaican relations:

Extract from Blood and Fire: Jamaica Political History (Documentary) pic.twitter.com/JICy7UpgiY

— A General Theory of Curry Goat (@coolieduppy) March 7, 2026

Another Jamaican commentator observed how much the narrative had gradually changed in the past year:

Today the narrative is that the Cuban Medical program was exploitative. But the archives still exist and we remember what Anju said months before. BTW the education of the Jamaican Students in Cuba is paid for by the Cuban govt; they should close the program. pic.twitter.com/jz7oQtHkpF

— Rampanpiza (@dentona22) March 6, 2026

A related, successful partnership with Cuba, under which 44 Jamaican students (among a total of 320) are currently studying medicine on scholarship in Cuba, appears to be intact, though in these uncertain times, the warm, long-standing relationship between Cuba and Jamaica may face more disruptions in the future.

Jamaican-American actor Sheryl Lee Ralph simply tweeted:

I have no words https://t.co/ev7S69NL8d

— sheryl lee ralph (@thesherylralph) March 6, 2026

In another post, she asked whether the U.S. might supply the medical staff so badly needed in Jamaica. In a similar vein, Jamaican diaspora member Dr. Leo Gilling observed on Substack that “many Jamaicans are asking a practical question: if the United States is encouraging Caribbean countries to reduce their reliance on Cuban healthcare workers, will there be support to help fill the gap those doctors leave behind? Jamaica is already experiencing significant migration of its own healthcare professionals, many of whom leave the island in search of better opportunities abroad. Removing hundreds of medical personnel without a clear replacement strategy could widen an already existing strain on the healthcare system.”

Another Jamaican shared a common reaction:

@jlpJamaica @AndrewHolnessJM seeks to make @POTUS @realDonaldTrump happy.@Grok @GOP #TalkTheTruth pic.twitter.com/xzzjHUddis

— Marcus A Bogle (@likle_wiked) March 6, 2026

Suggesting that Jamaica is facing a “Hobson's Choice,” a local podcaster referred to a popular meme showing Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness bending his knee to an approving President Trump.

On social media, meanwhile, Jamaicans tried to make sense of the sequence of events and the existing details of the arrangement over the years:

So after however umpteen years the programme has been going on, no one looked at the terms and conditions of the arrangement? Were there complaints from the Cuban medical personnel that were overlooked or ignored? https://t.co/eL3bjfMOLB

— RW (@speakyourmind62) March 9, 2026

For her part, Minister Johnson Smith continued to stress that labour laws and other legal concerns were the reasons for the cessation of the programme, saying “the continued lack of response had the practical effect of preserving an arrangement that Jamaica could not justify. Given our legal obligations, our duty to ensure fairness to workers in Jamaica, and the need for compliance with our own laws and international conventions, the Government ultimately concluded that continuation on the existing terms was untenable.”

In a long tweet on the topic, political commentator Clyde Williams posited, “I hear talk about cowardly conduct etc and crawling on our knees. I disagree, who amongst us picks a fight with someone bigger, badder and not restrained by rules or laws? The Jamaican proverb ‘cockroach nuh bizniz in a fowl fight’ is apt. Our best resistance is through Regional Institutions like the OAS and overtures through third parties to Moscow, Beijing and the Democratic Party in the US. And even then…”

Among many other commentators, Kennie Williamson of Caribbean News Network urged Caribbean countries to reject U.S. pressure: “By rejecting these claims, Caribbean governments affirm that the real exploitation lies in U.S. attempts to weaponize human rights rhetoric for regime-change goals in Havana, rather than genuine concern for workers.”

A political science student shared an emotional video from a Cuban in Jamaica, who explained the conditions under which Cuban medical personnel work, how they are paid, and how much they are appreciated by Jamaican patients:

Behind the political pressures, policies & propaganda are real people.

One Cuban shares her voice on pressures to end Cuban medical diplomacy in the West, specifically Jamaica which has just ended its 50 year partnership.

Source: https://t.co/SqtdZTnsa9 (Facebook) pic.twitter.com/2KCEJMlZGJ

— Rhyesa Joseph (@RhyesaJ) March 8, 2026

So, what of the cherished Jamaica-Cuba relationship? Dr. Gilling concluded, “With a relationship that has spanned generations and touched so many areas of national life, the conclusion of this chapter invites both reflection and careful consideration of what comes next.”

The Guyanese government has also ended its long-standing relationship with the Cuban Medical Brigade, stating that it was the Cubans who withdrew their medical workers from the country. Other regional nations have also made moves to either terminate or renegotiate their existing agreements with the Cuban medical programme.