Cuban healthcare crisis leaves over 100,000 patients waiting for surgery
Cuba's health system is on the brink of collapse, with more than 100,000 people on waiting lists for surgical procedures. Daily power cuts and water shortages cripple hospitals, and elevators are often inoperable.
Essential medicines are scarce: about 70 % of items on the basic drug list are unavailable in pharmacies and hospital shelves. The shortage has been linked to the U.S. oil embargo, which the Cuban government says has forced factories to shut down for lack of fuel.
Neonatal mortality has risen sharply, climbing from 0.4 % in 2018 to nearly 1 % in 2025, with a peak of 1.4 % in Havana early this year – the highest in over two decades. Births have also fallen, with only 68,051 children born in the latest year, roughly 3,100 fewer than the previous year.
Health Minister José Ángel Portal confirmed the system’s near‑collapse, while Vice President Eduardo Martínez Díaz denounced the sanctions as a "genocide". Journalist Yoani Sánchezová described personal experiences of overcrowded clinics, lack of testing capacity, and empty medicine cabinets.
Entities: CiberCuba · Cuba · Eduardo Martínez Díaz · José Ángel Portal · Yoani Sánchezová
Claims
What the coverage asserts, and how well corroborated each claim is across sources.
- [● 2 SOURCES] Health Minister José Ángel Portal said Cuba's healthcare system is on the brink of collapse. (Articles 2 and 3)
- [● 2 SOURCES] Approximately 70 % of essential medicines are missing from Cuban pharmacies and hospital shelves. (Articles 2 and 3)
- [● 2 SOURCES] More than 100,000 patients are waiting for surgical operations in Cuba. (All three articles)
- [● 2 SOURCES] Only 68,051 children were born in Cuba in the most recent year, about 3,100 fewer than the previous year. (Articles 2 and 3)
- [● 2 SOURCES] Neonatal mortality in Cuba rose from 0.4 % in 2018 to nearly 1 % in 2025, reaching 1.4 % in Havana early 2025. (Articles 2 and 3)
- [● 2 SOURCES] Daily electricity outages and water supply interruptions affect Cuban hospitals. (Articles 2 and 3)
- [● 2 SOURCES] The crisis has been exacerbated by the United States oil embargo. (Articles 2 and 3)
- [● 2 SOURCES] Vice President Eduardo Martínez Díaz called the U.S. sanctions a 'genocide'. (Articles 2 and 3)