For those who support or sympathize with Fidel Castro and his dictatorship of Cuba, no argument comes up more frequently than the supposedly marvelous health-care system that Castro has created for the Cubans. They routinely credit him with managing to deliver world-class facilities and treatment, equally for all Cubans, far surpassing even the United States in egalitarianism and effectiveness. For some people, that level of medical care outweighs Castro's oppression, which would be ludicrous even if they were right about the medical system they espouse.

Unfortunately, that system is a myth, as Val Prieto points out in Babalublog. Val points out a March 6th article in Gentunio, translated partially here, which has a number of pictures of Clínico Quirúrgico in Havana. Here's what Fidel Castro said about Clínico Quirúrgico in 1989:

"Now, the old hospital has turned into one of the most modern and best ones in the capital. I should explain that this hospital provided services to a large number of people who live at the other side of the Almendares River." ... "Not only did the number of beds increase, with blocks and civil construction spreading throughout almost 30,000 square meters of construction, but the power unit is totally new-boilers, electric power generators, etc.["]

Reporters from Gentiuno managed to get into the actual hospital with a camera, and they found a much different situation. For example, this is what they found in the emergency room:

Yes, those are cockroaches, at least the Darwin Award winners that got caught under the feet of patients, doctors, and staff. Lord knows how many smarter ones have managed to stay alive. They may come from the restrooms for the emergency room:

If one manages to survive surgical treatment in the emergency room, then they have plenty of time for infection, er, reflection in the recovery room. Take a look at that area and tell me if you'd feel healed by resting a while in here, first the ceiling and then the floor:

Remember the new power system that Castro had installed in 1989? It looks like he skipped a few items on the checklist. Either that, or the hospital wants to drum up more business through electrocution of patients and staff:

When leftists tell you that Castro may have his faults but he provides for the Cuban people with his marvelous health system, try to remember these pictures. I wouldn't send a stray dog to a facility like this to get put to sleep, let alone receive treatment. And this is what Castro considers a jewel in the crown of the Cuban HMO program. Be sure to read Val's entire post, and if you read Spanish, check out Gentiuno's article for more details.

UPDATE: Welcome, Instapundit readers!

Trackback Pings

TrackBack URL for this entry is

Listed below are links to weblogs that reference The Mythology Of Cuban Medical Care:

» Saw this, and shuddered. from Milblog
Seeing I just had hernia surgery, I saw a link to the supposed epitomy of Cuban medical care over on Captain's Quarters - this being a hospital that was opened in '89. Now, one of the supposed sucesses of Cuba... [Read More]

Tracked on March 14, 2005 3:23 PM

» That Cuban Health Care System from Patterico's Pontifications
Captain Ed has a great post on Cuba's wonderful system of medical care, complete with pictures. [Read More]

Tracked on March 14, 2005 11:26 PM

» BABALU BLOG: The Myth of Cuban Healthcare from Whither The Fool?
Every single time the island of Cuba and fidel castro's revolution are covered anywhere in the media one of the points always mentioned is Cuba's free healthcare. You can practically time it.... [Read More]

Tracked on March 15, 2005 9:20 AM

» Fidel's Lovely Health Care System from Isaac Schrödinger
Castro is a ruthless dictator and he has been running his thugocracy for over four decades. Leftist response: Well, he [Read More]

Tracked on March 15, 2005 9:26 AM

» But hey, it's free! from Cynical Nation
Captain Ed has an exposé of Cuba's vaunted "health care" system, including pictures. Go check it out... if you've got the stomach for it. [Read More]

Tracked on March 15, 2005 1:28 PM

» Cuba's horrible not-free healthcare from The House Of Wheels
Thanks to two reporters at Gentiuno, the lie of this supposed socialist paradise's supposedly great health care is smashed (almost as badly as the walls, heh)... [Read More]

Tracked on March 15, 2005 10:19 PM

» Cuban Health Care? from Myopic Zeal
Captain Ed has a photo essay. Instapundit was touched.... [Read More]

Tracked on March 16, 2005 6:44 AM

» Cuban Hospital Pictures - Unbelievable from View From Tonka
I'm telling you to be sure to look at these photos. Then, whenever you hear someone telling you about the modern and efficient Cuban Healthcare system you can show them these pictures. I wouldn't bring my dog to one of these places for treatment. [Read More]

Tracked on March 16, 2005 7:32 AM

» Cuban Medicine Truth Photos from Lockjaw's Lair
Although the Democratic Party has become an organization almost bereft of ideas in recent years, there are still a couple of issues that they staunchly support as ideals. One of these is a single-payer medical system, aka Socialized Medicine. Frequentl... [Read More]

Tracked on March 16, 2005 8:47 AM

» Cuban Health-care Exposed from Jake Allen's Ockhamist.com
Some disturbing pictures have emerged from the Venezuelan paper Gentiuno covering a Cuban hospital. This blog covers the story in English (via Instapundit). Beyond the obvious failure of socialism and the American Left's continued madness in supporting... [Read More]

Tracked on March 16, 2005 9:38 AM

» You think your HMO is bad? from Mike's Noise
Then imagine what it is like to be an average Cuban citizen who must use facilities like these when they are in need of medical attention. [Read More]

Tracked on March 16, 2005 10:29 AM

» Free Health Care in Cuba from Different River
Cuba may have problems, they say, and Fidel Castro may be a dictator, but at least Cuba has excellent, free health care available to everybody. Or so they say. Here is a sample of these claims. From "The Cuban Experience": The Cuban health ca... [Read More]

Tracked on March 16, 2005 9:19 PM

» Should we travel to Cuba anyway? from Cuba Travel
We are not allowed to travel there, should be go? [Read More]

Tracked on March 20, 2005 9:29 AM