By LEANDRA ROLLE

Tribune Chief Reporter

lrolle@tribunemedia.net

CUBAN healthcare workers could soon sign direct contracts with the government if a proposed labour agreement submitted to US officials last week is approved, Health and Wellness Minister Dr Michael Darville said Friday.

Dr Darville said the contract was requested by US officials as part of ongoing discussions over the government’s proposal to directly hire Cuban workers.

“If that comes back favourable, many of the Cuban professionals are here will go into a direct contractual agreement with the Ministry of Health and not the Cuban government itself,” he said Friday, describing the high-level talks as very “fluid.” 

He noted that US officials are constantly requesting additional information, which he said the government is happy to provide.

“It is our responsibility to work very closely with our partners, the United States, to ensure that we clarify any misconception that exists about the use of labour improperly,” Dr Darville said. “I could say this much, and I’m sure the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would say the same thing, we don’t consider ourselves to be in violation with any labour laws.”

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.

US Chargé d’Affaires Kimberly Furnish recently praised The Bahamas’ efforts to overhaul the system, noting the US sees it as a positive step.

The country currently employs three Cuban nurses and three doctors — two ophthalmologists and one optometrist — along with X-ray technicians, physiotherapists, and biomedical specialists.

Public Hospitals Authority (PHA) Managing Director Aubynette Rolle said the reduced Cuban workforce has strained staff and increased PHA’s financial burden as local workers are required to work overtime.

She said Cuban professionals have provided strategic support in pharmacy services, both outpatient and inpatient, and have also assisted with maintaining biomedical equipment, areas where their impact has been noticeable.

She added that the PHA has expanded training in specific allied health areas to help address the shortfall.

Mrs Rolle also noted that efforts remain underway to recruit from countries with no labour export concerns, noting that medical professionals from Canada and the UK have shown interest.