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Cuba will end the year 2025 with an infant mortality rate of 9.8 per thousand live births, the highest level recorded in over two decades, as reported on Friday by Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz.
The figure shows a significant decline compared to the previous year, when the rate was 7.0, and confirms the structural crisis facing the Cuban healthcare system, affected by a lack of medications, supplies, medical personnel, and adequate hospital conditions.
“Despite the actions taken, infant mortality is worsening,” acknowledged Marrero during a meeting of the Council of Ministers in Havana.
He assured that the Government is continuing the implementation of the Program to strengthen the National Health System, although with "discreet results."
Marrero admitió que la compleja situación epidemiológica del país —marcada por brotes de arboviral diseases, dengue, and chikungunya— ha requerido un “esfuerzo superior” del sistema de salud, sin lograr revertir los principales indicadores negativos.
According to the Prime Minister, the Ministry of Public Health (MINSAP) and BioCubaFarma are operating "closed currency schemes" with a availability of 200 million dollars, intended for the purchase of medications and medical equipment.
However, he acknowledged that those funds "remain insufficient" to ensure stable coverage of the Basic Medicines List, which has been severely impacted by shortages and a lack of foreign currency.
"Discreet steps have been taken to recover the quality of services, but the revenue is still insufficient to achieve greater results," the official stated, during an address that reflected the seriousness of the national health situation.
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