By LEANDRA ROLLE

Tribune Chief Reporter 

lrolle@tribunemedia.net

AS the Davis administration awaits approval from the United States over its proposal to directly hire Cuban professionals, Health and Wellness Minister Dr Michael Darville assured yesterday that the foreign workers are not in limbo but continue to work in the country.

Last month, Dr Darville confirmed that the government had sent a draft contract requested by US officials as part of ongoing discussions over the proposal to directly hire Cuban workers.

He told The Tribune yesterday that officials have not yet received a response but want to ensure the diplomatic note meets all requirements before moving forward.

“Hopefully, you know, between this week and next week, we’ll get a better indication, but we would like to move very quickly to resolve this matter and put this behind us,” he told The Tribune yesterday.

Pressed for details on the contract, Dr Darville called it a standard agreement, noting the main change is that Cuban professionals will now arrange their own accommodations and have more freedom over their living arrangements.

“Ultimately, they’ll have more choice on what they do, because the Cuban embassy here always like to try to have them living in the same location, but we do not get involved in that with our healthcare workers from any part of the country. They can go and seek accommodations wherever they choose,” he said.

The shake-up in The Bahamas’ Cuban healthcare contracts began after US officials warned they would revoke visas for Bahamian government officials and their relatives if the country continued to participate in Cuba’s labour export programme to hire medical workers, an arrangement Washington argued amounted to forced labour.

A leaked 2022 contract, published by Cuba Archive, showed The Bahamas paid up to $12,000 per month per Cuban doctor, while the doctors themselves received just $990 to $1,200.

The remainder went to Cuba’s state-run agency, Comercializadora de Servicios Médicos Cubanos (CSMC).

In June, Dr Darville said Cuban healthcare workers would be hired directly by his ministry rather than via intermediaries, and that existing deals could be cancelled, with those unwilling to accept new terms expected to return to Cuba.

The US has recently praised The Bahamas' efforts to overhaul the system, noting it as a positive step.