BBC News: Prevention better than cure in Cuban health care system
“…In terms of having healthy people, the Cuban health service outperforms other low- and medium-income countries and in some cases, outperforms much richer ones too. Despite spending a fraction of what the United States spends on health care (the World Bank reports Cuba spends $431 per head per year compared with $8,553 in the U.S.) Cuba has a lower infant mortality rate than the U.S. and a similar life expectancy…” (Hill, 12/13).

New York Times: Changes Coming for Health Care in China and Cuba
“Two countries that are models of effective public health intervention, China and Cuba, have recently embarked on important policy changes, leaving some experts wondering whether citizens will be left worse off. In September, Cuba and the Obama administration began moving closer to normalized relations, which may expose Cuba’s vaunted medical system to powerful new market pressures. In October, China renounced its one-child policy, under which most families were forbidden to have more than a single child…” (McNeil, 12/14).

Yahoo! News: What America Can Learn from the Cuban Health Care System
“…Cuba sorely lacks the resources and the advances in medical technology that exist in the U.S., but the nation’s emphasis on preventive care and public health holds important lessons for the U.S., [William Cunningham, assistant dean for the College of Osteopathic Medicine in West Michigan and interim director of Michigan State University’s Institute of International Health,] believes — lessons that can perhaps help shape future cadres of medical professionals in this country and even influence the U.S. health care system going forward…” (Iyer, 12/14).

Yahoo! News: The Cuban Health Paradox
“…Much has been made in recent years of what public health and policy experts call the Cuban Health Paradox. Despite its third-world economy, the country has managed to achieve some first-world health indices — namely, a life expectancy (officially, 78 years) that matches that of the U.S., and an infant mortality rate (4.63 deaths per 1,000 live births) that’s slightly better than the States’. It has also achieved one of the highest doctor-to-patient ratios in the world and established a legitimate pharmaceutical sector … At the same time, however, health care in Cuba is actually abysmal…” (Interlandi, 12/13).