Bitter pill: Cuba runs low on life-saving medicines
On a near-daily basis, she sprints from one state-run pharmacy to another on a quest for pills and syringes. Increasingly, she has to turn to the black market and pay the higher prices there. That is if they have what she needs.
Rodriguez, who left her job as a physiotherapist to care for her sickly son, receives a monthly state grant of less than $12. Her husband's salary is not much more.
And as Cuba sinks ever deeper into its worst economic crisis in decades -- with critical shortages also of food and fuel, regular power blackouts and rampant inflation -- Rodriguez fears that one day the drugs may run out altogether.
"It drives me crazy," the 27-year-old told AFP at her home in Havana's Santa Fe neighborhood as her son Luis Angelo, watched a cartoon on her mobile.
"Missing a dose, not having the suction tubes, a catheter that cannot be replaced... all can lead to serious illnesses which can cost him his life."
Luis Angelo was born with a deformed esophagus, and while he waits to receive a transplant, breathes through a tracheostomy and eats though a tube inserted into his stomach. He is also asthmatic, has a heart condition, and suffers epileptic fits.
The boy takes seven different drugs daily, and needs a variety of tubes, syringes and other equipment to administer them.
AFP | ADALBERTO ROQUE
Cuba, reputed for supplying highly trained medical doctors to other countries and for its advanced domestic pharmaceutical industry, has long counted vaccines and medical services among its top exports.
Under US sanctions since 1962, and hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic that all but tanked its tourism industry, the communist country is now no longer medically self-sufficient.
Last year, the island nation of 9.7 million people could not afford the $300 million needed to import the raw materials it needed to produce hundreds of critical medicines.
'There's nothing'
In Havana, and further afield, pharmacy shelves are bare and hospitals lack basic supplies such as gauze, suturing thread, disinfectant and oxygen.
"There are days when there's nothing," a doctor in the capital told AFP on condition of anonymity.
AFP | ADALBERTO ROQUE
Cuba's healthcare system is public and meant to be universally accessible. Private pharmacies, clinics and hospitals are illegal.
Patients who require chronic medicine are issued with a document known as a "tarjeton," which allows them access to subsidized medicines.
Luis Angelo has a "tarjeton," but it is of little use if pharmacies don't have the drugs, said his mom.
On the black market, she is forced to pay $3 to $4 for a blister sheet of pills -- about a quarter of the average monthly Cuban salary at the unofficial exchange rate.
"The price is cruel," Rodriguez told AFP.
'Ray of hope'
Confronted with the ever-worsening medicine shortage, the government has since 2021 allowed travelers to bring back food and medicines in their luggage -- though not for resale.
Some of these drugs are feeding a black market that profits from the desperately infirm with sales via WhatsApp or internet sites.
Other sites, however, offer drugs for free or barter them for food.
In the NGO sphere, projects have also emerged to provide medicines to Cubans free of charge.
One, dubbed Palomas, has helped tens of thousands of people since its creation in Havana in 2021.
AFP | ADALBERTO ROQUE
It relies on medicines that people have "left over from a treatment, or were brought by someone from abroad," coordinator Sergio Cabrera told AFP.
Every day, in 13 WhatsApp groups, Palomas publishes a list of medicines it has available, and another list of those it needs.
One beneficiary was 32-year-old dentist Ibis Montalban, who said she managed to get her mother's chronic diabetes medication through Palomas, adding: "thank you, thank you, thank you."
Cabrera says it is hard to witness the suffering of people in need.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
IOL News
14 hours ago
- IOL News
Glenmore's R2bn claims against health service providers dismissed by Competition Tribunal
The decision comes after the Tribunal upheld exceptions filed by both the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) and AfroCentric Health, citing multiple deficiencies in Glenmore's case. Image: Supplied The Competition Tribunal has ruled against Glenmore Capital, dismissing its complaint regarding the alleged exclusion of its COVID-19 rapid antigen test kits from the South African public and private sectors. The decision comes after the Tribunal upheld exceptions filed by both the National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) and AfroCentric Health, citing multiple deficiencies in Glenmore's case. Glenmore's complaint, originally lodged with the Competition Commission in August 2022, sought damages nearing R2 billion, claiming that NHLS and AfroCentric engaged in exclusionary practices that barred it from entering the market for COVID-19 test kits. The Commission, however, chose not to pursue the case, citing Glenmore's struggle to achieve market acceptance as a result of commercial factors, including delays in regulatory approval and a decrease in demand as the COVID-19 pandemic waned. Frustrated with the Commission's decision, Glenmore escalated the matter to the Tribunal. At a pre-hearing in December 2024, Glenmore was afforded an opportunity to amend its founding affidavit to address the concerns raised by NHLS and AfroCentric. Despite making amendments, both defendants argued that Glenmore's case remained fundamentally flawed. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ In its defence, NHLS and AfroCentric articulated four primary exceptions, asserting that Glenmore's complaint lacked a valid cause of action, failed to properly identify the legal entities involved, lacked a clear market definition, and exceeded the Tribunal's jurisdiction due to the nature of the claims made. No valid cause of action: Glenmore's complaint failed to establish a legal basis under the Competition Act, lacking both legal and factual foundation. Glenmore's complaint failed to establish a legal basis under the Competition Act, lacking both legal and factual foundation. Improper citation of entities: Glenmore did not adequately identify which legal entity allegedly contravened the Act, despite having been given several opportunities to rectify this. Lack of proper market definition: The complaint failed to clarify the relevant market, with Glenmore shifting references between disparate health products without defining a cohesive product or geographic market. The complaint failed to clarify the relevant market, with Glenmore shifting references between disparate health products without defining a cohesive product or geographic market. Lack of jurisdiction and procedural issues: The Tribunal highlighted that it cannot award damages unless under consent orders and noted allegations outside the ambit of competition law, such as irregular procurement and insider trading. The Tribunal noted that Glenmore had been granted ample opportunity to clarify and bolster its case but ultimately failed to provide a coherent argument. With the exceptions upheld, Glenmore's complaint referral was dismissed in its entirety. BUSINESS REPORT
eNCA
5 days ago
- eNCA
Abidjan landfill transformed into city parkland
Beneath the fresh grass and brand-new infrastructure of Abidjan's Akouedo Park lie millions of tons of waste that for decades plagued locals' lives and health. Transforming landfill into recreational spaces -- turning trash into landscaped treasure -- has become something of a trend in recent years from New York to New Zealand. Abidjan, Ivory Coast's bustling economic hub, has now enthusiastically got in on the act. For residents of this eastern neighbourhood, covering over a landfill area, opened in 1965 and closed in 2018, is a blessing. The new park spans some 100 hectares, affording the rapidly urbanising city of some six million people an all too rare green space. After five years of construction, the urban park is ready to open, though an official date has yet to be confirmed. The radical change of scenery is a boon as the previous dumping of hazardous toxic waste had been a source of health, environmental and safety problems. - 'Good to breathe' - "We suffered a lot," Celestine Maile, who has lived in Akouedo for more than 30 years, told AFP. Today, "it feels good to breathe," she said, beaming, taking a look around the transformed surroundings. "There were mountains of garbage, and underneath, water used to flow everywhere," she recalled, of how things once were. Along with the exposure to odours and pests, the landfill constituted "a major public health problem", according to a 2019 study, which Ivorian scientists conducted on the toxicological risks to people living nearby. Its authors recommended the urgent "closure and rehabilitation" of the site, saying people living in the vicinity were "clearly exposed to poisoning from pollutants", including lead, mercury and carcinogenic chromium. Exposure to such pollution also helped give rise to conditions such as malaria, gastroenteritis and respiratory problems, the researchers said. "The garbage caused illnesses," stressed Maile, who said she suffers from eye problems linked to decades of living near the dump. Akouedo had also become a haven for drug dealing where assaults were common, she added. - 'Cemetery' resurrected - "That dump really felt like a cemetery," said Severin Alobo, who heads the office of the traditional chief of the Akouedo district. For Alobo, the creation of Akouedo Park has brought "repair" to the neighbourhood. "The name Akouedo will no longer be associated with a landfill, but with a beautiful urban park," declared Ivorian Minister of Hydraulics, Sanitation and Health Bouake Fofana. "What was lost has been largely regained," he added. AFP | Issouf SANOGO The minister said that 750 direct and indirect jobs had been created as a result of the project, which also includes a market, a middle school and the renovation of two kilometres of neighbourhood roads. Financed by the Ivorian government to the tune of 124 billion CFA francs ($221 million, 189 million euros), the overhaul also has an environmental component. The waste stored under the park will now be used for energy resources thanks to a drainage and capture system. Biogas and liquids resulting from the fermentation of the 53 million tons of accumulated waste are transported to a plant to be converted into electricity to power the park and part of the national grid. AFP | Issouf SANOGO The park has an "Environmental House" too, which Fofana said would host events on contemporary environmental issues. Visitors will be able to play sports in the park, which includes a tennis court and two football pitches. There is also a large footbridge that winds through an embryonic tropical forest and shared vegetable gardens. Like many rapidly urbanising African cities grappling with the challenge of managing waste, Abidjan has found a new, bigger substitute for the Akouedo landfill. Long the city's only waste storage site, it has been replaced by one with four times as much storage capacity in the Abidjan suburb of Kossihouen. By Lucie De Perthuis
IOL News
6 days ago
- IOL News
Chikungunya virus: symptoms, treatments and how to protect yourself from the mosquito-borne threat
Southern China is experiencing a chikungunya outbreak, reviving memories of COVID-19 controls. Image: Jimmy Chan/pexels In what feels eerily like a return to 2020, southern China is facing an outbreak that's reviving memories of the pandemic, but this time, it's not Covid-19. It's chikungunya, a virus spread by mosquito bites that causes sudden fever and severe joint pain, often lingering for months or even years. According to Bloomberg, the outbreak's epicentre is Foshan, a city in Guangdong province in South China, where over 6500 cases have been reported in just a few weeks. The local government is acting swiftly: hospitals are keeping patients under mosquito nets, drug purchases are being monitored, and communities are undergoing mass testing and disinfection campaigns. What is chikungunya Pronounced chik-un-GUN-yuh, the virus was first identified in Tanzania in 1952, but only arrived in China in 2008. Today, it's known to circulate in over 110 countries, mostly in Africa, South and Southeast Asia, and now, more prominently, southern China. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), symptoms usually appear 3–7 days after a mosquito bite and include: Sudden high fever. Intense joint and muscle pain. Skin rashes. Headaches. Swelling of the joints. While most people recover within a week, some may suffer from chronic joint pain for months, sometimes even years. Fortunately, deaths are rare, and the virus is not spread person-to-person, only through mosquito bites. Still, in vulnerable groups like newborns, the elderly, and those with chronic illnesses like diabetes or heart disease, the illness can hit harder. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ With over 7,000 cases reported, authorities are implementing measures reminiscent of the pandemic. Image: Saeed Saeed/pexels Not another lockdown, but a wake-up call. Though the virus itself isn't new, the scale of the response in China is catching attention worldwide. Authorities are now tracking people buying over-the-counter fever or pain relief medication, a tactic used during the Zero-Covid strategy, reports "Bloomberg". Rather than lockdowns or digital tracking, outbreak control should focus on vector management and reducing human mosquito contact, Dr Donal Bisanzio, a senior epidemiologist at RTI International, a nonprofit research group, told BBC News. According to Kang Min, Director of Guangdong CDC's Institute of Infectious Disease Prevention and Control, new cases are slowing down, but challenges remain due to international travel and the flood season, which fuels mosquito breeding. Here's what local authorities are doing: Mass disinfection drives and stagnant water removal. Encouraging window screens and mosquito nets. Fines of up to 1,000 yuan (R2 600) for businesses not cleaning up mosquito habitats. Seven-day health campaigns in high-risk towns like Lecong. Communities light mosquito coils at the same time daily to maximise the repellent effect. What does this mean for travellers and locals alike? With the outbreak spreading to 12 cities in Guangdong province and a first imported case in Hong Kong, a 12-year-old boy who had visited Foshan, global attention is growing. The US State Department has even advised travellers to China to exercise increased caution. In an interview with eNCA, Professor Tulio de Oliveira from the Centre for Epidemic Response and Innovation at Stellenbosch University discussed the chikungunya virus. He noted that in South Africa, the NICD has recorded ten travel-related cases of this virus from December to July. During the winter months, there are no immediate concerns about widespread outbreaks in South Africa. However, emphasised that the real concern for South Africa will arise in the summer when mosquito populations increase. "The variant causing concern originated in Réunion Island in March, leading to a significant outbreak with nearly 50 000 infections. While it also spread to Mauritius, effective measures helped control it there." He added, 'This variant has mutations that allow it to spread more easily through certain mosquito species.' 'Climate change and rising temperatures are expanding the areas where mosquitoes thrive, which could lead to more chikungunya cases. ' He urged vigilance as the situation evolves, especially with the potential for more introductions of the virus into South Africa as the seasons change. How to protect yourself Use mosquito repellent daily, especially in humid, rainy seasons. Install mosquito screens on windows and doors. Sleep under mosquito nets, especially if you live near standing water. Wear long sleeves and pants if you're outside at dawn or dusk. Eliminate stagnant water in plant pots, buckets, or outdoor containers. If you've travelled to affected areas and develop fever, joint pain, or rash, see a doctor and mention your travel history. Early detection helps avoid complications and stops the spread.
