[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 116 (Thursday, July 19, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1562]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




TRIBUTE ON THE GRADUATION OF AMERICAN STUDENTS FROM THE LATIN AMERICAN 
                   SCHOOL OF MEDICAL SCIENCES IN CUBA

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. BARBARA LEE

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 18, 2007

  Ms. LEE. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize and offer my personal 
congratulations to Dr. Melissa Barber, Dr. Evelyn Erickson, Dr. Carmen 
Landau, Dr. Toussaint Reynolds, Dr. Teresa Thomas, Dr. Wing Wu and 
especially my two constituents, Dr. Jose de Leon and Dr. Kenya Bingham, 
who will all be graduating on July 24, 2007 from the Latin American 
School of Medical Sciences. They have all traveled a long road to earn 
Medical Doctorates in Havana, Cuba.
  These dedicated doctors overcame immense hurdles to complete their 
medical educations. They not only had to face 6 years away from home, 
but had to pursue their educations in Spanish after attending a 12-week 
intensive language program. They had to complete their studies cut off 
from their families and uncertain about their futures due to the 
draconian Cuban embargo that continues to threaten this excellent 
program. I was proud to have initiated the scholarship program, along 
with other members of the Congressional Black Caucus, after a visit to 
Cuba in 2000. I am also proud to support the students' ability to 
travel to Cuba and I hope to encourage more students to take advantage 
of this incredible opportunity to bring access to healthcare back to 
those who need it most.
  These pioneering students of medicine should be recognized for not 
only the many challenges that they had to overcome, but also for their 
dedication to service. They had to commit to serve in medically 
underserved communities, back home in the United States, in order to 
receive their free medical education in Cuba. The Cuban government 
offers 250 full scholarships each year for students from the United 
States to study medicine there. Tuition, dormitory room and board, and 
textbooks are all provided free of charge and allow students who might 
otherwise not have the resources to pursue medical degrees in the 
United States to become doctors and to serve the uninsured and 
underinsured who too often fall through the cracks of our for-profit 
healthcare industry.
  It is my hope that what these doctors have achieved will not only 
bring desperately needed health care to the uninsured, but will also 
serve as an example to the healthcare industry, the American people and 
the Members of this Congress, that health care is a basic human right, 
not a privilege.

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