Florida House of Representatives

Manny Diaz Jr.

Representative, District 103

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – January 22^nd, 2013

REPRESENTATIVE MANNY DIAZ JR. AND SENATOR RENE GARCIA FILE LEGISLATION TO PREVENT U.S CITIZENS FROM PRACTICING MEDICINE IN FLORIDA IF TRAINED IN CUBA BY THE CASTRO REGIME.

HIALEAH- State Representative Manny Diaz Jr. (R-Hialeah) and State Senator Rene Garcia (R-Miami-Dade) have filed legislation this week (HB 517 and SB 456) that would prohibit U.S citizens or residents who travel to Cuba for the purpose of medical training or a medical degree from practicing in Florida.

“U.S students who turn a blind eye to basic human and civil rights abuses in Cuba do not possess the moral clarity to serve patients in Florida” said Representative Diaz. “The Fidel Castro medical scholarship program is purely a propaganda tool. Hopefully this legislation will stop American citizens from participating in Cuba’s medical apartheid system.”

This indoctrination of American students has been a part of Cuba’s “free” medical training for over a decade with over a 150 American students participating and 19 graduating the program as of last year. Sen. Garcia added that “using American students and training them in the medical field will not forgive the basic rights denied to the Cuban people.”

The legislation would not affect those who trained in medicine before exile and only those who willingly go to Cuba to be used as propaganda tools by the Cuban government.

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