Brazil's government says it will soon start selecting local doctors to replace the more than 8,000 Cuban physicians working in areas where medical services are scarce.
Cuba says it's recalling the physicians in the "More Doctors" program after Brazilian President-elect Jair Bolsonaro set conditions unacceptable to the island's government. He said the program could continue only if doctors get their full pay directly rather from the Cuban government and are able to bring their families with them. The doctors generally receive a fraction of the salary paid to the Cuban government.
Brazil's Health Ministry announced Friday it will start this month "to select professionals for the 8,332 positions that will be abandoned by the Cuban doctors."
FILE - In this Aug. 30, 2013 file photo, Cuban doctors observe a dental procedure during a a training session at a health clinic in Brasilia, Brazil. Cuba said Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2018, it is ending a program that sent government doctors to remote regions of Brazil in exchange for millions in badly needed dollars. The end of the "Mas Medicos," or "More Doctors," program signals a sharp deterioration in relations between communist Cuba and Brazil, which just elected far-right presidential candidate Jair Bolsonaro. (AP PhotoEraldo Peres, File)
The government launched the More Doctors program in 2013.