Rubio to discuss with Jamaica Cuban doctor program after US visa threats

(This March 26 story has been refiled to correct grammatical errors in paragraphs 1 and 2)

KINGSTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday said that Jamaica and the U.S. will discuss the Cuban doctors helping the Caribbean island's health system to better understand the medical program, after Washington threatened to halt visas for officials tied to these programs.

Rubio has accused officials in the program of being involved in human trafficking and labor exploitation, accusations denied by Cuba and many Caribbean leaders, who say the Cuban medical programs are essential and comply with international labor laws.

"Jamaica has a deficit in health personnel," Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness told a joint press conference with Rubio. "We ensure that they are treated within our labor laws and benefit like any other worker."

"Any characterization of the program by others certainly would not be applicable to Jamaica," he added.

Rubio said every country operated the program differently and that Washington would be engaging with Jamaica and have a better understanding of how the country was applying it.

Cuba's leaders reject the U.S. accusations as Rubio's "personal agenda... based on falsehoods" and said the U.S. threat could affect millions of healthcare beneficiaries.

Earlier this month, Jamaican Foreign Minister Kamina Johnson Smith told reporters her government was concerned about the accusation and the presence of some 400 Cuban doctors, nurses and medical technicians was important for Jamaica's healthcare system.

"Their presence here is of importance to our healthcare system," she said, pointing to 400 doctors, nurses and medical technicians currently working in the country.

Elsewhere in the region, other Caribbean leaders have rejected the accusations of labor exploitation and some have said they would rather give up visas than the medics.

As well as targeting countries receiving Cuban medics, who have since the country's 1959 revolution been dispatched to countries around the world to help people in need, Washington has also announced tariffs for countries that buy Venezuelan oil.

POTENTIAL VISA BANS

The potential visa restrictions come as the U.S. is also mulling possible wider-ranging visa bans for some smaller Caribbean nations, which have citizen-by-investment programs under which foreigners can pay for access to visas or passports.

Rubio, the son of Cuban immigrants and a fluent Spanish speaker, is a longtime hawk on Cuba and Venezuela policy, pushing for the region to reduce its ties with Cuba and Venezuela.

Rubio highlighted the U.S. relations with Jamaica, saying it could benefit from the near-shoring of supply chains and that the U.S. would offer security support aimed at reducing gang activity there.

This support, he said, would include forensic laboratories and initiatives aimed at reducing recruitment into criminal organizations.

"I can think of no better friends than the Caribbean, and frankly, in the Western Hemisphere, than Jamaica," Rubio added.

He did not say what business operations U.S. firms could launch in Jamaica.

Under previous governments, many companies from IT firms to carmakers serving U.S. markets have moved from hubs in Asia to Mexico, though U.S. tariff threats have thrown the future of many of these supply chains into uncertainty. 

Rubio is scheduled to meet with leaders of Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados and Haiti, who traveled to Jamaica for the occasion, later on Wednesday.

(Reporting by Humeyra Pamuk and Sarah Morland; Additional reporting by Daphne Psaledakis; Editing by Brendan O'Boyle and Aurora Ellis)