A 74-year-old woman spent three days in a line at a pharmacy in Camagüey hoping to be able to buy her medications this Thursday.
The story of this lady, named Marta, was shared on Wednesday by the Camagüey journalist José Luis Tan Estrada, who was moved by the ordeal of this woman.
"Many elderly people are here, marking without knowing what they will get, because if you ask the pharmaceutical companies, they don't know; it's a matter of luck and truth," the lady commented, reflecting the uncertainty and weariness she and other seniors in the same situation experience.
Marta lives on a pension of 1,500 pesos, an amount that barely lasts her until the end of the month and does not even cover basic needs.
In the black market, the value of the medications needed doubles your pension, making the situation even more difficult, pointed out the journalist.
"With her right hand, Marta holds a white nylon bag with a bottle of water that will accompany her all afternoon. Her face reflects the mark of the sun, and her skin shows the fatigue and wounds of life," noted Tan Estrada.
"She walks a few steps and sits on the waiting bench, next to other people with the same wrinkles and more," she expressed.
The economic crisis in Cuba has impacted the elderly in a particularly harsh way, as they face insufficient pensions to cover their basic needs. Furthermore, being the most vulnerable age group to diseases, the growing shortage of medications affects them particularly severely.
In last May, an elderly Cuban reported that people have to spend the night outside pharmacies in the hope of being able to get the medications they need the following day.
Carmen Pérez Martín shared a photo on her Facebook profile in which she is seen sitting on a small bench in a doorway, while waiting for her turn.
Very close, another elderly man with his head down is also waiting: "Many slept outside the pharmacy to see if we can get the medication we need. Life is only one, and we are standing in line after line. And we keep holding on," he lamented.
However, the hardships that grandparents suffer in Cuba will unfortunately continue.
The Minister of Public Health in Cuba, José Angel Portal Miranda, informed the deputies of the Health and Sports Commission of the Cuban Parliament last July that the shortage of medications will continue in the pharmacy network across the country.
"To say that this situation will be resolved in the coming days would be irresponsible," said the minister, justifying the shortage due to a lack of financing and internal organizational problems, according to the official outlet CubaDebate.
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