Cuban Ministry of Health's work at risk due to fuel blockade

HAVANA, Cuba, February 16 (ACN) The recent restrictive measures imposed against Cuba by the U.S. have generated far-reaching disruptions to vital health services, transportation, and supplies, with direct repercussions for the care of pregnant women, children, chronically ill patients, and medical emergencies, the Ministry of Public Health (MINSAP) reported through the Granma newspaper.

More than 32,880 pregnant women face additional risks as a consequence of the energy blockade imposed by the U.S. government against Cuba.

The health entity specified that the measure affects priority attention to

Maternal and Child Health, with limitations in access to obstetric and genetic ultrasounds, essential for the timely diagnosis of malformations.

The fuel shortage also restricts the mobilization of teams attending to severe maternal morbidity and critically ill newborns, delays childhood vaccination schedules, and puts the lives of children with special needs at risk, such as those requiring home ventilation and mechanical suction.

According to official data, these disruptions could impact more than 61,830 children under one year old who require special care in this early stage of life.

MINSAP indicated that the limitations affect emergency medical care, cancer patients, and chronic disease follow-up programs, which increases mortality in the country.

The new U.S. measures also hinder the acquisition of medicines, supplies, reagents, medical instruments, and spare parts, affecting the vitality of hospitals, operating rooms, and intensive care units.

The decrease in commercial flights and the increase in freight costs complicate access to essential resources for the Health System, including those transported urgently.

Faced with this scenario, Cuban healthcare personnel maintain continuous efforts to guarantee medical care and human support, considered an inalienable achievement of the Cuban Revolution despite the intensification of the economic, commercial, and financial war against the island.