The President of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum, assured this Monday that her government will uphold the agreement with Cuba for doctors from the island to work in the Mexican public health system, despite the sanctions from the United States against the regime of Havana’s “medical export” programs.
“Currently, we have collaboration with Cuba on various topics. Cuban doctors will continue; it is an established agreement, everything is in order, and we will proceed with that,” said the leader at her daily press conference, as reported by the agency EFE.
Sheinbaum emphasized that Cuba is one of the few countries willing to send specialists to Mexico and announced that in 2026 she will seek to strengthen cooperation in the treatment of diabetic foot, to leverage a medication developed on the island.
Sheinbaum's position is not new. In June, she had already publicly defended the program, just after Washington announced visa restrictions on Central American officials linked to these missions, accused of operating under forced labor conditions.
“There is a contract for Cuban doctors to assist the population in Mexico. We see no problem with that,” he stated, rejecting allegations of labor exploitation.
The U.S. Department of State maintains that the Cuban regime uses these brigades as a mechanism of "modern slavery," as it retains passports, controls salaries, and deprives doctors of autonomy.
Millions for the Cuban regime
Beyond the political debate, the figures reveal the economic weight of these agreements for Havana. Journalistic investigations in Mexico documented that, between 2022 and 2025, the program IMSS-Bienestar transferred more than 2,019 million Mexican pesos, approximately 105 million dollars, to the Cuban regime and to associated companies, including the state-owned Comercializadora de Servicios Cubanos, S.A.
Of that amount, at least 23 million dollars were delivered directly to that Cuban company, while other payments covered accommodation, transportation, and meals for the brigadistas in Mexico.
Another key criticism is that neither the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS), nor IMSS-Bienestar, nor the Ministry of Health have clear indicators regarding the performance of foreign doctors, which raises concerns about the transparency of the program.
But bilateral cooperation goes further. In August, an investigation by Mexicanos Contra la Corrupción y la Impunidad (MCCI) revealed that Mexico sent, in just two months, 39 shipments of crude oil and derivatives to Cuba valued at 850 million dollars, nearly as much as in the previous two years combined.
These shipments took place despite the Mexican energy crisis and warnings from the U.S., which in 2023 canceled a loan to Pemex after detecting fuel deliveries to the island.
Between politics and the survival of the regime
Sheinbaum's decision to maintain the agreement with Cuba solidifies Mexico as one of Havana's primary allies on the continent, ensuring fresh foreign currency and energy supply at a time of acute internal crisis.
Meanwhile, the debate is intensifying. On one hand, for Washington and human rights organizations, it is a scheme of labor exploitation and opaque financing for the regime; for the Mexican government, it is an immediate response to the shortage of specialist doctors in its own country.
The truth is that, in practice, the agreement has become an economic lifeline for the government of Miguel Díaz-Canel, which exports doctors and receives oil while hospitals on the island face shortages, a lack of personnel, and constant blackouts.
Filed under:
