ABSTRACT
Health care has remained a central Government priority throughout the economic decline. Even as the system's imports of hard currency have been slashed by almost 70 percent, officials say financing for health care has actually risen over the last five years as a proportion of the overall budget. Some foreign public health experts say the impact of the economic turmoil might already be catastrophic were it not for the island's large network of hospitals and clinics and its relative wealth of physicians, nearly half of whom are deployed in a national community medicine program that emphasizes preventive care. Cuban hospitals now have "green" pharmacies where aloe leaves are whipped to make anti-inflammatory creams, herbal teas substitute for sedatives and honey is used to make remedies of all sorts. Shortages of electricity and gas have forced many Cubans to cook with scrap wood or kerosene, contributing to a rise in respiratory infections.
