Blackouts and rising prices across the island
Cubans are living with extended power outages and difficulty obtaining medicine under a strict U.S. embargo and sanctions designed to pressure the country's Communist government, according to CBS News reporting from Havana.
The embargo on oil imports has left the electrical grid in a state of near-collapse, CBS News reported. Most places, including the capital, get only a few hours of electricity a day, and often less. Together with crumbling infrastructure, the energy crisis has driven up the cost of basic goods.
At a bread line in one of Havana's more upscale neighborhoods, a woman told CBS News that bread prices have risen tenfold this year. She said she earns a government salary of less than $20 per month and tries to make each baguette last at least two days.
Strain on health care
CBS News saw parents lining up for care at a children's hospital. Doctors working in what was once a renowned public health system told the network they can no longer source critical, lifesaving medicines for pediatric patients.
Some Cubans have turned to free, community-run pharmacies. Retiree Sara Emilia Marquez showed CBS News medicine that had been donated to her after her monthly prescription began arriving only once every three months, if at all. Others, the report said, are buying drugs from street vendors on the black market.
New sanctions and Washington's stated aim
The Trump administration has intensified its pressure campaign in recent months, CBS News reported. On Thursday it imposed new sanctions on Cuba's state-run bank, saying the institution has ties to Iran.
Cuba's foreign minister rejected that claim, insisting the bank is "absolutely legitimate," and described the move as collective punishment.
According to CBS News, the administration has made clear that it wants to remove Cuba's government. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said the economic campaign is engineered to make the government feel it has no escape valves. CBS News noted that this is also how many people in Cuba say they feel.
Money problems for state workers and an uncertain political path
Roughly two-thirds of Cubans work for state entities, and for them the latest sanctions are another obstacle to getting money, the report said. Pensioners can wait for hours to collect their government payments, and some told CBS News they go hungry.
Cuba has adopted a series of economic reforms intended to open the private sector. However, its leaders have said people should not expect political reform. Although Cuban officials have shown willingness to negotiate with the U.S. government, CBS News said talks currently appear to be at a standstill.
