US blockade affects people with disabilities in Cuba

Havana, Nov 2 (Prensa Latina) The blockade imposed by the United States on Cuba for more than six decades has hindered the effective social inclusion of people with disabilities in the country and the improvement of their standard of living.

By virtue of such a policy, Cuba cannot import essential equipment and supplies from the United States to meet the needs of these vulnerable individuals, and their purchase in other countries is persecuted.

According to Cuba’s 2022 report on the impact of these unilateral measures, despite the considerable resources and efforts allocated by the State to this sector, from January to July 2021, the effects of the blockade in this field are estimated at 369,589,550 dollars.

Beyond these figures, the US Government’s obstinacy to make the development model chosen by Cuba fail causes unquantifiable damage and suffering to families.

For example, these provisions significantly limit the domestic production of wheelchairs, since raw materials, parts and pieces for their manufacture and spare parts must be purchased through intermediaries, which entails a significant increase in costs.

Meanwhile, blind and visually-impaired people in Cuba cannot benefit from the JAWS screen reader, which would allow them to interact with computers, because the blockade laws prevent the use of this software, developed by the US company Enterer-Joyce.

It also affects the development of the National Cochlear Implant Program, which mainly favors children with severe or profound hearing loss, due to the difficulties in receiving accessories for these medical devices, and the persecution of donations of batteries and other components from companies elsewhere in the world.