Two South Florida lawmakers are pushing for a law that would stop American doctors who studied in Cuba from receiving medical licenses in Florida.
Rep. Manny Diaz Jr., and Sen. Rene Garcia, both Hialeah Republicans, filed bills last week, seeking to clamp down on U.S. medical students who go to Cuba for training.
“U.S students who turn a blind eye to basic human and civil rights abuses in Cuba do not possess the moral clarity to serve patients in Florida” said Diaz in a statement. “The Fidel Castro medical scholarship program is purely a propaganda tool. Hopefully this legislation will stop American citizens from participating in Cuba’s medical apartheid system.”
The Cuban government offers a free medical training program that has drawn in thousands of students from around the world, including many from the United States.
If the bill pushed by Diaz and
Garcia passes, any American student who goes to Cuba
for training will not be able to get a medical license to practice in Florida.
The ban would not apply to those who trained in Cuba
prior to coming to the U.S.
According to Diaz’s press release it would only apply to “those who willingly
go to Cuba
to be used as propaganda tools by the Cuban government.”
Last year, Garcia pushed a bill that would prevent local governments from contracting with firms that had Cuban branches. Gov. Rick Scott signed the bill, but also said it could not be enforced, sparking backlash in the Cuban exile community in Miami. The measure led to a federal lawsuit and is tied up in court.
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