U.S. offers Cuba medical supplies for Haiti
By JUAN O. TAMAYO
jtamayo@ElNuevoHerald.com
The U.S. government has offered medical supplies to Cuban doctors in
earthquake-devastated Haiti, but the Cubans have not yet formally agreed
to accept the aid, the State Department said Friday.
The Cubans were reported to be running out of supplies at the three
hospitals in Port-au-Prince where they have been treating hundreds of
patients a day and performing surgeries almost around the clock.
``We have offered medical supplies, but the Cubans have not formally
agreed to such assistance, nor have any materials been provided as
yet,'' said Charles Luoma-Overstreet, spokesman for Western Hemisphere
Affairs at the State Department.
``We will continue to identify areas where our cooperation [with Cuba]
can support the overall relief effort in Haiti,'' added Luoma-Overstreet
in an e-mail from Washington.
Cuba already had some 340 medical personnel in Haiti when the quake
leveled much of Port-au-Prince last week, killing tens of thousands and
leaving many more with broken bones and crushed limbs.
It later sent in a 60-person emergency crew and 10 tons of supplies.
The Irish Times newspaper reported Tuesday that some of the Cuban
medical teams had run out of anesthetics and were performing amputations
on aware patients.
Cuba is allowing U.S. medical evacuation flights from the Guantánamo
Naval base to Miami to overfly the island, saving up to 90 minutes of
flying time.
U.S. offers Cuba medical supplies for Haiti - Haiti - Help and Healing -
MiamiHerald.com (23 January 2010)
http://www.miamiherald.com/haiti/help-and-healing/story/1441048.html
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