US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the United States will provide alternatives to Caribbean nations that rely on Cuban medical missions, as Washington continues to raise concerns about the programme.

Responding to a question about whether the issue was raised during meetings with regional leaders at the 50th Heads of Government meeting of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) in St Kitts and Nevis on February 26, Rubio said the matter did come up, though it was not the central focus of discussions.

“We’re providing alternatives to them. We have medical missions that can provide an alternative. And in fact, we’ve met some of those folks in the past,” Rubio said.

Rubio’s comments follow statements by Saint Lucian Prime Minister Philip Pierre, who said Washington had instructed his government to discontinue sending students to Cuba to study medicine.

At a cabinet media briefing in January, Pierre said there are no plans to withdraw Saint Lucian medical students currently studying in Cuba.

The secretary of state reiterated Washington’s longstanding criticism of Cuba’s overseas medical programme, describing it as exploitative.

“The other thing with the Cuban medical program is the fact that these people are working – basically, it’s human trafficking. I mean, they’re barely even being paid. Their freedom of movement is tightly restricted. And we want these countries to understand that that’s what they’re participating in,” Rubio said.

He added that host governments pay the Cuban state for the missions, with little of the money going directly to the doctors.

“They’re paying this money to the regime, which collects the funds. They get paid for these medical missions. Virtually none of this money goes to these doctors, who are in many cases – we think it’s like a version of human trafficking, labor trafficking, and we think it’s wrong.”

Rubio said some countries have attempted to pay doctors directly but claimed Cuban authorities do not permit such arrangements.

Despite the criticism, Rubio indicated the issue would not define US diplomatic ties with Caribbean states.

“We’re not going to cut diplomatic relations with countries in the Caribbean because they don’t agree with us on it, but we make a forceful point about it, and it came up today. It wasn’t the feature of the conversation, but it came up.”

Cuba’s medical missions have long been a pillar of its foreign engagement in the Caribbean, with several small island states depending on Cuban doctors and training to supplement limited local healthcare resources.

The Trump Administration has threatened to sanction any government that continues to utilise the services of Cuban medical teams saying they are supporting human trafficking and exploitation.

Barbadian Prime Minister Mia Mottley hailed Cuban medics as a lifeline for the country during the coronavirus pandemic.

During a parliamentary sitting in March 2025, Mottley said she was willing to face any sanctions for her government’s decision to utilise Cuban medical staff.